ANALYSIS: DEI leaves students unequipped for workforce, companies step in

72% of young adults who have university degrees say that college did not fully prepare them to start a career, according to a recent report by Multiverse. 

Additionally, nearly half of those polled stated they were expected to go to college immediately after graduating high school, but they would have avoided it if their dream job was attainable without a degree. 

“Colleges either don’t focus on the skills required for the jobs integral to the modern economy, or they supply them in insufficient numbers,” the report states. 

The report confirms a trend covered by Campus Reform Higher Education Fellow Nicholas Giordano, that higher education has failed students. 

[RELATED: PRO. GIORDANO: Schools are failing students]

From not knowing basic history to not being prepared for the workforce, Giordano has found that institutions of higher learning have dramatically failed to prepare students with the basic skills and knowledge they need for life after college.

Companies realize this fact, as Giordano explained in a recent interview. 

While some companies have dropped the four-year degree requirement, others are stepping up to the plate, aiding universities in preparing their students for the workforce. 

Earlier this month, for example, the University of Texas System (UT System) partnered with Google to begin training and offering students Google Certificates in data analytics, e-commerce and digital marketing, as well as IT Support. 

The University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee is also now providing students with apprenticeships in HR departments. 

Florida International University (FIU) also recently partnered with Metis—a data science and analytics training provider—to offer training in technical skills. 

The reason for this trend is clear Giordano explained during the interview: universities have placed significant emphasis on DEI education rather than career readiness. 

[RELATED: Student protestors demand A’s, better cafeteria food, control of the president’s house] 

The University of Richmond (UR), for example, recently received a $625K grant to explore “barriers to student inclusivity.” And at a mathematics conference in Nashville, Tennessee, professors strongly pushed for an emphasis on DEI. 

Campus Reform also recently obtained exclusive audio and images from a mathematics education conference in Nashville, Tennessee, where scholars pushed a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion agenda.

One slide read that many mathematics standards “create toxic spaces for historically marginalized students and are violent toward them.”

“Young adults crave workforce experience - 6 in 10 young adults believe it’s the most crucial element to prepare for a successful career,” not college, the report says. 

Campus Reform reached out to every university, organization, and individual mentioned. This article will be updated accordingly. 

Follow @BiaginiWilliam on Twitter. 

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Editorials and op-eds reflect the opinion of the authors and not necessarily that of Campus Reform or the Leadership Institute.