News & Insights

Now in its third year, the State Opportunity Index uses a research-based framework to measure how effectively all 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C., are connecting postsecondary education to career opportunity.

Now in its third annual iteration, the report includes a “Pathways to Progress” section that highlights how states are improving the connection between education and economic opportunity.

Strada Institute for the Future of Work surveyed 2,500 executives and senior leaders responsible for entry-level hiring and talent decisions and asked how much they value college students’ work-based learning experience, what motivates them to offer it, how much of their workforce it currently reaches, and what stands in the way of expanding their work-based learning offerings.

The analyses in this report explore variations in experiences across student populations and fields of study; the sources and channels through which students experience education-to-career guidance; and how quality coaching experiences are linked to student perceptions about other aspects of their education.

By providing insight into employment opportunities, earnings, and workforce demand, labor market information helps students understand how educational pathways most consistently connect to career outcomes. This qualitative research is based on in-depth qualitative interviews with career services professionals and undergraduate students.

These five resources were developed to provide a summary of the research behind each of the five Principles for Quality Education-to-Career Guidance.

The summer 2026 Strada Education Foundation interns were exposed to the work of a national nonprofit while building skills for their future careers.

At a State Higher Education Executive Officers Association convening in Washington, D.C., delegations of state leaders exchanged policy developments on work-based learning evidence and solutions.

Where does a state’s college-educated talent come from? Where do new grads go after commencement is over? A visual story about the migration patterns of working-age adults with college degrees.

A new Strada Institute for the Future of Work report shows how different states build college-educated talent pools, either by relying on their own high schools and universities or attracting talent from out of state.

Talent in Motion investigates interstate migration patterns of working-age adults with a bachelor’s or graduate degree and examines how these patterns differ by state, type of institution attended, level of educational attainment, major, occupation, and worker characteristics.

Individuals need control over their postsecondary education and employment records to navigate lifelong pathways across multiple educational experiences and careers.