Are College Degrees a Racialized Barrier to Economic Mobility for Black Workers?

BTI Executive Director Dr. Brandy Carter recently appeared as a panelist on Associated Black Charities’ “Equity at Work” webinar series exploring the research, data, and lived experiences of Black workers without college degrees who pursue skills-based jobs. Discussion questions included:

How does a degree requirement for skills-based work create a racialized outcome for Black workers? What are the barriers of implementation to changing the current system? How many years of experience in a job is equivalent to the experience of a new college graduate?

Dr. Carter appeared alongside other Maryland-based thought leaders from sectors of higher education, workforce development, and policymaking.

ABC’s CEO Diane Bell-McKoy shared that “It is important to understand the facts, the data, and the research regarding when college degrees are a valuable tool versus when they can be weaponized as another racialized hurdle for qualified Black and brown individuals. As current hiring practices stand, minimum degree requirements for skills-based work prevent these workers from economic mobility, as well as prevent employers from gaining valuable additions to their team.”