Only 15% of jobs in Florida require a college degree. Now if the FL Dem Party would pay attention,
it would reap the benefit.
The person or party who makes it part of their campaign platform to call for more vocational/technical high schools will win in a landslide. Instead we have testing, testing, and more testing. Please get this to Rod Smith or any Democrat smart enough to seize on this and make it an issue. Stop trying to make every kid a college graduate.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/fl-bachelor-degree-florida-20120116,0,7123817.story
SNIP
Get a college education, young students are often advised.
But when it comes to Florida's jobs, more than 85 percent do not require a four-year degree, according to data from the state's "Workforce Estimating" conference earlier this month.
"A lot of IT jobs require just high school, but experience," said Mandy Chen, 23, a recent technology graduate in Plantation who was seeking work at a job fair this past week. To gain experience, Chen said, she'll move or commute.
Florida's economy is based primarily on tourism, retail and agriculture, which is why most jobs require less education, labor experts say. Fewer than 10 percent of Florida's workers have bachelor's degrees, compared with about 12 percent nationwide, according to the state.
"Initially, you can get a job with a high school diploma and get a little training," said J. Antonio Villamil, an economist who is dean of the business school at St. Thomas University in Miami.
To get a management job in those same industries, employers usually prefer workers with a bachelor's or advanced degree, Villamil said.
But "this idea that everybody has to have a bachelor's degree doesn't make sense," said Villamil, pointing to well-paying jobs such as auto mechanic that require training but not a bachelor's. "There's nothing wrong with that."
Education or technical training can boost earnings, state data shows. Those with a high school diploma earn an average of $28,000 a year. With vocational training, average wages rise to more than $60,000. Workers with a bachelor's degree earn an average of $68,400 annually, according to state data.