HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE: Some CEOs Suggest Dropping Degree Requirements in Hiring.
Millions of jobs requiring a four-year college degree can be done without that level of education, some corporate leaders say.
To address inequalities in business and society, some executives suggest that companies shake up their approach to hiring and consider unconventional candidates. Black Americans in particular are often left unprepared by the U.S. education system, and companies could help by hiring workers without a degree and giving them training, Kenneth Frazier, CEO of Merck & Co., said Tuesday at The Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council Summit.
“It’s really important for us to recognize that because people haven’t had an opportunity early in their lives, it doesn’t mean that they can’t make a real contribution to your company,” Mr. Frazier said. “We want to just recognize that, in some ways, this is a harder population, but, at the same time, if we’re committed to being the kind of country that we want to be, then this is something that business has to be willing to do.”
Higher education is the greatest engine of inequality in America today, with K-12 following close behind.
Plus: Subsidized privilege: The real scandal of American universities.