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How State Policy Can Transform Career Navigation for Young People: A 50-State Analysis

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Bibliographic Details
Title: How State Policy Can Transform Career Navigation for Young People: A 50-State Analysis
Language: English
Authors: David Altstadt, Taylor Maag, Erica Cuevas, Alex Sileo, JFF (Jobs for the Future)
Source: Jobs for the Future. 2025.
Availability: Jobs for the Future. 88 Broad Street 8th Floor, Boston, MA 02110. Tel: 617-728-4446; Fax: 617-728-4857; e-mail: info@jff.org; Web site: http://www.jff.org
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 69
Publication Date: 2025
Sponsoring Agency: American Student Assistance (ASA)
Document Type: Reports - Evaluative
Descriptors: State Policy, Access to Information, Career Guidance, Work Based Learning, Microcredentials, Late Adolescents, Young Adults, Career Development
Geographic Terms: United States, Kentucky, Arizona, Washington, Florida, Indiana, Texas, Colorado
Abstract: Today's education-to-career ecosystem is too complex to navigate and lacks a supportive policy infrastructure for exposing students to the world of work and empowering them to make informed choices about their education and career options and advance along their desired pathways. This report highlights the need for states to build more effective career navigation systems to better meet the needs of all young people and analyzes the extent to which each state has enacted the policies necessary to achieve that goal. This policy landscape is the first comprehensive scan examining the extent to which states have adopted robust policies to support the development of an ideal career navigation system that includes the above key components. For each component, the authors identified specific policies that we believe are critical to supporting that piece of an effective career navigation system. In the introduction, the authors discuss the challenges that young people face in navigating education and workforce systems, make the case for why policymakers should care, and propose how a comprehensive career navigation system would better meet young people's needs. The next section details how policy can catalyze advancements in career navigation. The authors then review the 19 policies that are critical for the development of effective state career navigation systems and examine how policy alignment across the four key components sets a strong foundation for continued progress. The following sections describe each of the four key components in greater detail and list the specific policies that align with each component. The authors then provide an overview of the scan's key findings, based on states' adoption of the critical policies within each of the four components.
Abstractor: ERIC
Entry Date: 2025
Accession Number: ED675199
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:Today's education-to-career ecosystem is too complex to navigate and lacks a supportive policy infrastructure for exposing students to the world of work and empowering them to make informed choices about their education and career options and advance along their desired pathways. This report highlights the need for states to build more effective career navigation systems to better meet the needs of all young people and analyzes the extent to which each state has enacted the policies necessary to achieve that goal. This policy landscape is the first comprehensive scan examining the extent to which states have adopted robust policies to support the development of an ideal career navigation system that includes the above key components. For each component, the authors identified specific policies that we believe are critical to supporting that piece of an effective career navigation system. In the introduction, the authors discuss the challenges that young people face in navigating education and workforce systems, make the case for why policymakers should care, and propose how a comprehensive career navigation system would better meet young people's needs. The next section details how policy can catalyze advancements in career navigation. The authors then review the 19 policies that are critical for the development of effective state career navigation systems and examine how policy alignment across the four key components sets a strong foundation for continued progress. The following sections describe each of the four key components in greater detail and list the specific policies that align with each component. The authors then provide an overview of the scan's key findings, based on states' adoption of the critical policies within each of the four components.