If you can do
the job,
you can get
the job.
70 million STARs — workers who are Skilled Through Alternative Routes — are held back simply because they earned their skills outside of a bachelor’s degree. Meanwhile, employers struggle to prepare for jobs of the future and find the right fit for open roles.
The paper ceiling separates both sides from finding each other.
The solution is not easy, but it is simple: focus on the skills people have rather than where they got them. Hiring managers and recruiters who start with skills will find candidates others simply overlook. In fact…
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Hiring managers who start with skills are 60% more likely to find a successful hire.
Together, we're creating real impact.
1 Million
Commitments to open jobs to STARs¹
32
U.S. states pledged to remove degree requirements from jobs²
77%
consider hiring STARs for more jobs now than 2-3 years ago³
37%
removed a bachelor's degree requirement from a job⁴
STARs and companies share their paper ceiling.
Take action
If you are an
Hiring Manager or People Leader
To find the best person for the job, you have to look first at their skill.s You can help break barriers for STARs - while also strenghening your team.
Three things you can do today:
- Pledge to see the value of STARs' skills
- Share your paper ceiling story
- Find resources for skills-first hiring
Researchers
There’s a growing body of research about workers Skilled Through Alternative Routes (STARs), but much more is needed. The STARs research community includes scholars across economics, public policy, data science, and organizational behavior who are studying questions to help understand impediments to—and opportunities for—STARs’ wage mobility.
Philanthropies
More than half the workforce is being left behind. Improving economic mobility for workers who are Skilled Through Alternative Routes (STARs) can also advance efforts to reduce poverty, improve education, and address other systemic issues. Learn how Opportunity@Work is making tangible impact.
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