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Occupational Training

Commentary

If College Isn't the Pathway to the Middle Class It Once Was—What Is?

Is college still the best path to the middle class? It's complicated. College credentials still do lead many to increased earnings, but the rapid increases in college costs, coupled with a strong labor market, have made the payoff for a college degree no longer a sure thing.

Apr 5, 2022
Report

Optimizing the Role of Military Behavioral Health Technicians: A Survey of Behavioral Health Technicians and Mental Health Providers

RAND researchers surveyed military behavioral health technicians (BHTs) and licensed mental health providers about BHTs' contributions, training and supervision, and job satisfaction, as well as barriers to integrating them into clinical practice.

Mar 22, 2022
Research Brief

Behavioral Health Technicians: Extending the Reach of Military Behavioral Health Care

Behavioral health technicians are enlisted service members who work alongside licensed mental health providers. They serve as care extenders, helping the Military Health System improve the efficiency and effectiveness of its behavioral health care.

Mar 22, 2022
Essay

The Digital Skills Gap: What Workers Need for the Jobs of the Future

Business leaders have warned for years that what they see on job applications does not match what they need in new employees. There are not enough workers with the right digital skills. And as the world economy struggles to its feet after COVID-19, that skills gap threatens to keep pushing it down.

Mar 1, 2022
Report

Evaluation of the Minnesota Department of Correction's Career Navigators Program: Final Report

The authors conducted an independent process and outcomes evaluation of the Minnesota Department of Corrections' Career Navigators program, which aimed to help people with educational and career opportunities before and after being incarcerated.

Feb 15, 2022
Report

What Are the Skills Required to Obtain a Good Job? An Analysis of Labor Markets, Occupational Features, and Skill Training for the Youth ChalleNGe Program

The authors of this report identify a set of common skills among high-paying, growing occupations that do not require a bachelor's degree and describe how to incorporate such broader skills into the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe program curriculum.

Feb 4, 2022
Report

Improving U.S. Air Force Training and Development in the Cyber Field

The U.S. Air Force has been looking for ways to revamp the training of its offensive and defensive cyberwarfare workforce to develop the best fighting force possible. Is the training and development process that exists now working well for the cyber workforce? Is there a need for improvement?

Sep 29, 2021
Commentary

Can the AR/VR Industry Support Law Enforcement Training?

Law enforcement departments are increasingly considering using augmented reality and virtual reality for training. How can the AR/VR industry be incentivized to ensure that content responds to user needs and is accessible?

Aug 24, 2021
Commentary

Job Training Is More Effective When All Parties Work Together

The United States is facing economic gaps wider than have been seen in a century. To keep the nation economically strong and able to provide citizens with middle-class lifestyles, educators, government, and private industry need to work together to shape training opportunities.

Jul 6, 2021
Research Brief

Building Ohio's Workforce Through Stackable Credentials

Ohio has been a leader in scaling stackable credential programs since passing initial legislation on stackable credentials nearly 15 years ago. Over this time, Ohio saw strong growth in short-term credential programs. And most individuals who stacked credentials earned a degree.

Jun 8, 2021
Report

Stackable Credential Pipelines in Ohio: Evidence on Programs and Earnings Outcomes

Stackable credentials allow individuals with short-term credentials to build on them with additional credentials throughout their careers. The authors of this report examined educational programs in Ohio and earnings gains from stacking credentials.

Jun 8, 2021
Journal Article

Effective Game-Based Training for Police Officer Decision-Making: Linking Missions, Skills, and Virtual Content

This paper reports the result of a two-year pilot study that developed a framework for implementing low-cost, game-based, virtual reality technology for training police officers to improve their decision-making under stress.

Mar 12, 2021
Content

RAND Lowy Family Middle-Class Pathways Center

The RAND Lowy Family Middle-Class Pathways Center (MCPC) is committed to forging new and better paths toward sustainable work opportunities for all Americans. RAND researchers are designing, piloting, and evaluating interventions focused on skill pathways, entrepreneurship, and workplace technology.

Feb 25, 2021
Journal Article

Comparing the Effects of Academy Training Models on Recruit Competence: Does Curriculum Instruction Type Matter?

The purpose of this paper is to determine if a police academy using adult learning techniques instills higher levels of perceived competence in recruits than an academy using traditional pedagogical methods.

Jan 19, 2021
Essay

Education and Employment Should Be One System, Not Two

Too many American workers aren't getting the education and training they need to compete in the 21st century. We need to revamp the entire system of educating and employing people. And that system needs to ensure equitable access to opportunities and lifelong learning.

Jan 7, 2020
Report

Effectiveness of Screened, Demand-Driven Job Training Programs for Disadvantaged Workers: An Evaluation of the New Orleans Career Pathway Training

The authors of this report examine the implementation and effectiveness of a New Orleans job training program that helped lower-skilled, unemployed, and underemployed individuals train for and find skilled jobs in particular industries.

Oct 17, 2019
Research Brief

What Works for Job Training Programs for Disadvantaged Workers

Can workforce development programs resolve the mismatch between the talent available and the skills in demand? An evaluation of the New Orleans Career Pathways program offers insights that should be helpful to anyone striving to create or improve such programs.

Oct 17, 2019
Commentary

Is Training for NHS Staff to Manage Workplace Violence Effective?

Going to work should not mean being subjected to physical or verbal assault, but this is the reality faced by thousands of frontline NHS staff. De-escalation training may help staff manage patient violence and aggression, but there is not enough research about what works in specific healthcare contexts.

Sep 4, 2019
Commentary

Jobs Can Improve the Lives of Syrian Refugees and Their Host Communities

Host governments, international development agencies, and donor countries like the United States could take several steps to improve Syrian refugee employment. This would increase self-reliance among Syrian refugees and ease pressures on host communities.

Mar 11, 2019
Blog

Syrian Workers, Iranian Spies, Jihadi Brides: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on jobs for Syrian refugees, Iran's efforts to spy on the United States, the complicated cases of jihadi brides, and more.

Feb 22, 2019

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Occupational Training

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RAND Education and Labor