Technical Education: Boys and Men

Abstract

Male students graduate from high school and enroll in college at lower rates than females. Male participation in the workforce has also declined over the past several decades. We present evidence on changing workforce demand and participation that highlights how opportunities for female-dominated employment have outstripped those for male-dominated occupations. We also show how several of the high-growth occupations that do not require a BA fall under the category of career and technical education (CTE), suggesting that CTE has a role to play in improving outcomes for males. We conclude with four implications for policy and practice: (1) scale successful models, (2) support areas shown to benefit male students, (3) use CTE to connect applied postsecondary education to employment, and (4) use CTE to connect males to occupations with high demand or strong compensation, including jobs in which males are not well represented, like education and health care.