Reach University President, Joe E. Ross, joined , CEO of Futuro Health and host of , to discuss how Apprenticeship Degrees are shaping the future of learning, work, and care.
Together, Van and Joe dive into how to define an Apprenticeship Degree; how job-embedded programs are funded to ensure learner affordability; how liberal arts courses can be integrated into the greater workplace experience; and how Reach envisions bringing this barrier-free model to sectors beyond K-12 education, such as the behavioral health and healthcare sectors.
A brief overview of key episode takeaways can be found below. To listen to the full episode and read the transcript, please visit:
Key Takeaways:
1. What is an Apprenticeship Degree?
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Apprenticeship Degree is a "job first and foremost that’s paid and that is paired with some type of related instruction and some mentorship with the ultimate objective of the apprentice, the learner, obtaining a credential of some kind and then a promotion in their field without having to leave their home or their community and certainly without having to get out of the workforce to get ahead."
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An Apprenticeship Degree is "also a fully accredited degree. Reach University is accredited by the same accreditor that accredits Stanford and University of California. It is not a bachelor apprenticeship, it’s a bachelor of arts. It’s not an associate apprenticeship, it’s an associate of arts, but it’s delivered in the context of the workplace being the campus."
- Apprenticeship Degree follows three key tenets, the ABCs: 1) It's Affordable. The learner is paid from day 1 through graduation and the program is offered at a low-to-no cost to the learner, generally without student loan debt; 2) It's Employer-based and the learner's place of employment becomes the primary place of learning; and 3) It offers Credit for the work the degree seeker does on the job.
2. What are the key challenges for peer colleges in developing Apprenticeship Degrees?
- Assessing On-the-Job Learning: Designing valid systems to evaluate and grant credit for workplace learning is crucial.
- Building Workplace Partnerships: Most universities are unaccustomed to collaborating closely with employers on program design, recruitment, and student support. Apprenticeship Degrees change this dynamic.
- Ensuring Affordability: Creating high-quality programs that remain affordable requires innovative strategies like awarding credit for work, cohort-based cost efficiencies, and leveraging innovative faculty models, such as "professors of practice."
91´«Ã½'s offers playbooks and resources in overcoming each challenge.
3. The Power of Apprenticeship Degrees Across Sectors
- These Apprenticeship Degrees address both job shortages and workforce diversity in fields like behavioral health, where an apprenticeable job (on-the-job learning) intersects with a degreeable job (where a degree is required or valuable).
- For example, pairing associate degrees with entry-level service roles can lead to bachelor's and eventually master's degrees in high-need fields like social work, enabling long-term career progression.
4. Early Indicators of Reach's Apprenticeship Degree
- High Semester-to-Semester Retention Rates: Over 90% semester-to-semester retention demonstrates the success of combining education with meaningful employment in learners' home communities.
- Graduate Employment: Nearly all graduates transition directly into jobs, with some contributing to the university itself.
- Workforce Representation Matches: Apprenticeship Degrees are helping the workforce better reflect the demographics of the communities served, especially in education and healthcare sectors.
Listen to the full interview wherever you get your podcasts:
https://futurohealth.org/podcast/joe-e-ross-president-of-reach-university-turning-jobs-into-degrees/