Promising Pathways: College and Industry Routes to Good Jobs for Illinois Youth from Low-Income Families. Illinois High School to Career Series. Part Two
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| Title: | Promising Pathways: College and Industry Routes to Good Jobs for Illinois Youth from Low-Income Families. Illinois High School to Career Series. Part Two |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Meg Bates, Sarah Cashdollar, Erin Mitchell, Jenny Nagaoka, Caitlin Clinton, Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative (IWERC), University of Chicago Consortium on School Research |
| Source: | Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative, Discovery Partners Institute. 2025. |
| Availability: | Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, State of Illinois for Discovery Partners Institute. 200 South Wacker Drive, 20th Floor, Chicago, IL 60304. Tel: 217-766-6779; e-mail: IWERC@mx.uillinois.edu; Web site: https://dpi.uillinois.edu/applied-research/iwerc/ |
| Peer Reviewed: | N |
| Page Count: | 48 |
| Publication Date: | 2025 |
| Document Type: | Reports - Research |
| Education Level: | High Schools Secondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Education Work Relationship, Low Income Students, High School Seniors, Racial Differences, Gender Differences, Family Income, Academic Degrees, Educational Attainment, Intellectual Disciplines, Industry |
| Geographic Terms: | Illinois |
| Abstract: | Fewer than half of U.S. workers report having a job that provides livable wages with benefits, a predictable schedule, safe working conditions, a sense of enjoyment and meaning, and other characteristics of high-quality employment. Those who do work in jobs with high-quality characteristics--or what many term "good jobs"--are disproportionately White, male, and highly educated (Bellisle et al., 2025; Rothwell & Crabtree, 2019). However, there is some evidence that opportunities for good jobs are improving (Clark & Kozák, 2024), and good jobs are expected to grow in the U.S. through 2031 (Strohl et al., 2024). Expanding access to good jobs is vital for ensuring that all members of society can benefit from this growth. As such, this report is focused on identifying promising pathways to good jobs, especially for those who started life with less economic advantage. In Report 1 of this series, the authors used a unique state data set, the "Illinois High School 2 Career" project, to describe education and earning outcomes for Illinois high school seniors from the classes of 2008 to 2012 with diverse family income backgrounds. Report 1 found that earning a higher level of education led to higher income for students from all backgrounds; however, students from lower-income backgrounds were less likely to attain higher education and, even when they did, were less remunerated, on average--even when working in similar industries or with similar education. While this first report identified the outcomes of various post-high school pathways for different student groups, it did not specifically address the pathways that promote the economic success of low-income students. This report, the second and final report in the series, returns to the High School 2 Career data and seeks to identify "promising pathways" that support students from low-income backgrounds in accessing good jobs, despite the powerful headwinds against economic mobility found in Report 1. This study defines a good job as one in which the person's earnings are in the top three quintiles (i.e., top 60%) relative to their peers in the same high school cohort. For the students who met the study criteria, the authors ask: (1) Which education and industry pathways led a high proportion of students from low-earning families to work in a good job?; and (2) How did these promising pathways vary by race/ethnicity and gender? In other words, what are the promising pathways in Illinois that can move students from the bottom economic rungs to the top. The authors hope to inform Illinois educators and policymakers so that they can provide students with more information about and access to such promising pathways. However, they caution that identifying and encouraging access to such pathways is only one piece of a complex puzzle of economic, social, labor, and education policies likely needed to promote economic prosperity for all (Carnevale et al., 2023; NASEM, 2024). Breaking cycles of income inequality requires interventions beyond individual choice of education and career pathway, such as investing in education and career training, supporting personal and environmental health, and reducing exposure to crime and violence (see NASEM, 2004, p. 85 for a summary of evidence-based interventions for reducing intergenerational poverty). In the remainder of this paper, the authors first share key takeaways, then describe in detail the background, methods, and findings supporting these takeaways. [Pritzker Traubert Foundation supported this work.] |
| Abstractor: | ERIC |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | ED679347 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | Fewer than half of U.S. workers report having a job that provides livable wages with benefits, a predictable schedule, safe working conditions, a sense of enjoyment and meaning, and other characteristics of high-quality employment. Those who do work in jobs with high-quality characteristics--or what many term "good jobs"--are disproportionately White, male, and highly educated (Bellisle et al., 2025; Rothwell & Crabtree, 2019). However, there is some evidence that opportunities for good jobs are improving (Clark & Kozák, 2024), and good jobs are expected to grow in the U.S. through 2031 (Strohl et al., 2024). Expanding access to good jobs is vital for ensuring that all members of society can benefit from this growth. As such, this report is focused on identifying promising pathways to good jobs, especially for those who started life with less economic advantage. In Report 1 of this series, the authors used a unique state data set, the "Illinois High School 2 Career" project, to describe education and earning outcomes for Illinois high school seniors from the classes of 2008 to 2012 with diverse family income backgrounds. Report 1 found that earning a higher level of education led to higher income for students from all backgrounds; however, students from lower-income backgrounds were less likely to attain higher education and, even when they did, were less remunerated, on average--even when working in similar industries or with similar education. While this first report identified the outcomes of various post-high school pathways for different student groups, it did not specifically address the pathways that promote the economic success of low-income students. This report, the second and final report in the series, returns to the High School 2 Career data and seeks to identify "promising pathways" that support students from low-income backgrounds in accessing good jobs, despite the powerful headwinds against economic mobility found in Report 1. This study defines a good job as one in which the person's earnings are in the top three quintiles (i.e., top 60%) relative to their peers in the same high school cohort. For the students who met the study criteria, the authors ask: (1) Which education and industry pathways led a high proportion of students from low-earning families to work in a good job?; and (2) How did these promising pathways vary by race/ethnicity and gender? In other words, what are the promising pathways in Illinois that can move students from the bottom economic rungs to the top. The authors hope to inform Illinois educators and policymakers so that they can provide students with more information about and access to such promising pathways. However, they caution that identifying and encouraging access to such pathways is only one piece of a complex puzzle of economic, social, labor, and education policies likely needed to promote economic prosperity for all (Carnevale et al., 2023; NASEM, 2024). Breaking cycles of income inequality requires interventions beyond individual choice of education and career pathway, such as investing in education and career training, supporting personal and environmental health, and reducing exposure to crime and violence (see NASEM, 2004, p. 85 for a summary of evidence-based interventions for reducing intergenerational poverty). In the remainder of this paper, the authors first share key takeaways, then describe in detail the background, methods, and findings supporting these takeaways. [Pritzker Traubert Foundation supported this work.] |
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