Following Gov. Gavin Newsom’s decision, nearly 30,000 state jobs in California will no longer require a degree.
“The state has now removed college degrees or other certain educational requirements for nearly 30,000 state jobs,” according to a release.
“This effort is part of the Newsom administration’s work to modernize state government and improve the hiring process by removing unnecessary barriers to public service jobs,” according to the news release.
The release also announced “a new goal to double” the number of nearly 30,000 jobs without a degree requirement by 2025.
“The proposal for an additional roughly 32,000 positions statewide is currently being negotiated with employee unions and will be submitted for approval in 2025,” according to the announcement.
The California Human Resources Department (CalHR) determines whether a degree or “other educational requirements” are required for a job, according to the release.
CalHR is the state department in charge of things like state employee salaries, job classifications, training, exams, and so on, according to its website.
Camille Travis, Deputy Director of Communications at CalHR, told The Center Square that “CalHR has committed to the policy and ongoing practice of ensuring there are multiple pathways, including without a degree, to most jobs.”
Travis stated that the CalHR program “has removed barriers to employment from the minimum qualifications [totalling] approximately 176 job classifications to date where a degree or other educational requirement is not necessary, expanding opportunity and access to well-paying jobs in public service.”
“Since 2014, CalHR has worked to simplify the State’s job classification plan via projects that streamline processes and address barriers to state hiring, exam maintenance, bargaining discussions, and pay equity for affected classes,” Travis informed us.
According to the release, Newsom stated: “California is working to ensure that every person has what they need to get a well-paying, long-lasting job so we can build an economy for the future that supports all families.”
“Every Californian deserves the opportunity to build real-life skills and pursue a fulfilling career – including those that don’t require college degrees,” Newsom told the press.
The decision to eliminate degree requirements for some jobs is “in line with Newsom’s Freedom to Succeed Executive Order,” according to the release.
According to a news release, the executive order is part of a career education initiative aimed at “preparing students and adults for the workforce of tomorrow” and lowering employment barriers for state jobs.
College degree requirements that are “unnecessary to job duties” are among these barriers.
According to Tear the Paper Ceiling, half of the American workforce are “skilled through alternative routes,” or “STARs.”
According to Tear the Paper Ceiling, the majority of these 70 million workers do not have bachelor’s degrees and learned their skills on the job.
Tear the Paper Ceiling is a campaign by Opportunity@Work that advocates hiring based on skill rather than degrees, according to a release. “If you can do the job, you can get the job,” Opportunity@Work CEO Byron Auguste said in the release.
Tear the Paper Ceiling reports that 66% of rural working Americans qualify as STARs.
According to a Brookings commentary, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, among others, have eliminated the requirement for college degrees for up to 90% of state jobs, depending on the state.
