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PASSHE is helping to build the robust workforce that Pennsylvania needs
73% of the nearly 12,000 total projected spring graduates earn credentials that
prepare them for jobs with worker shortages
PASSHE serves more in-state students than any four-year college or university
in Pennsylvania
Harrisburg, PA – As part of its commitment to prepare students for in-demand careers, Pennsylvania’s
State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) projects nearly 9,000 graduates—73% of the
12,000 total projected spring graduates—will earn degrees or certificates in business,
education, health care, psychology, protective services, and STEM programs—all career
fields with worker shortages.
In addition to the nearly 12,000 projected graduates this spring, a total of
nearly 8,000 students graduated following the Summer and Fall 2023 and Winter 2024
semesters.
“This is a great moment for these tremendous students and for Pennsylvania’s
workforce,” said PASSHE Chancellor Dan Greenstein. “These graduates are educated and
ready to enter jobs with worker shortages, from hospitals and classrooms to law enforcement,
growing businesses and the high-tech STEM economy.”
“As state-owned public universities, we have a responsibility to help build
the robust workforce that Pennsylvania needs. These graduates exemplify that students
are overwhelmingly choosing majors to get jobs in high demand, and they are ready
to start rewarding careers and help drive Pennsylvania’s economy.”
College-to-Career Path
PASSHE’s 10 state-owned universities coordinate with regional employers to
align their academic programs with local workforce needs and create a college-to-career
path that benefits students and employers.
By emphasizing career-aligned programs, PASSHE universities have increased
the number of degree and certificate graduates in high-growth job fields over the
past decade, despite the enrollment challenges higher education is facing across the
country.
The three most enrolled majors at State System universities are business, education
and health care.
“Pennsylvanian employers—large and small—need talented people with a comprehensive
education and specific skills to be problem solvers, innovative thinkers and ambitious
doers, so they can be successful in a competitive marketplace,” said Greenstein. “For
these graduates, the combination of their knowledge, passion and dedication will help
them to have success, strengthen the commonwealth’s economy and create sustaining
jobs.”
With 82,000 students—nearly 90% of whom are from Pennsylvania—PASSHE universities
serve more in-state students than any four-year college or university in Pennsylvania.
A strong majority of State System university graduates stay in the commonwealth to
live, build careers and support their communities.
Worker Shortages
Many employers in Pennsylvania are struggling to hire qualified candidates
for open jobs. In the health-care sector alone, Pennsylvania’s rural hospitals reported
job vacancy rates last year of 26% for direct-care registered nurses and 28% for nursing
support positions. Pennsylvania is expected to have the largest shortfall of registered
nurses nationally by 2026, according to industry groups.
School districts in Pennsylvania are dealing with a growing shortage of teachers
in the classroom and a need for more educators to enter the profession. PASSHE is
a major provider of new teachers, with nearly 2,000 education majors graduating from
State System universities this year to help with the teacher shortage.
“Higher education opens doors of opportunity, whether students earn a degree
to launch a career or complete short programs to update their skills to get a raise
or promotion,” said Greenstein. “We are proud of all our graduates in every major
and commend everyone who supported them in earning their degree. Their hard work is
an investment in themselves—and it will benefit communities throughout Pennsylvania
for decades to come.”
There are more than 640,000 State System graduates living in Pennsylvania.
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