3 The Opportunity Ahead: A Call to Action for American Skills and Jobs for employment, making many well-paying IT jobs accessible to individuals without traditional educational credentials. In IT, if you demonstrate that you can do the job, you often can get the job. IT jobs made up 15 percent of middle-skill job postings in a 2013 Burning Glass analysis.46 In an analysis of the Houston metropolitan statistical area, computer user support specialists – a high number of which are sub-bachelor’s degree positions – commanded the second-highest median wages of any “bachelor’s degree not required” occupations, behind nurses. Network and systems administration roles present a particularly strong opportunity to upskill workers without a formal bachelor’s degree. In 2013, there were over 12,000 postings for entry-level job postings in network and systems administration that did not require a bachelor’s degree – 38 percent of total job postings in the occupation.47 Critically, IT support roles can serve as on-ramps to higher-skill jobs that offer workers higher salaries. In the Houston area, 100 percent of computer retail sales and support roles, and 97 percent of PC repair roles, were available to workers without bachelor’s degrees. These positions serve as ramps to higher- wage positions in Wadhwani Foundation “Race to a Job” advanced computer In 2012, the Wadhwani Foundation launched the “Race to a Job” (RTAJ) support, network support, initiative. The mission of RTAJ is to enhance student employability while and helpdesk reducing learning times and costs and improving completion. Wadhwani management. From is pioneering a learner-centric massively open online system delivered in computer retail sales and a hybrid model that scales existing successful workforce development PC repair roles, acquiring programs in collaboration with community colleges, community-based credentials such as organizations, training unions and industry partners. Wadhwani rolled Microsoft Certified out two pilot partnerships in 2013. Anne Arundel Community College Solutions Expert, Cisco (AACC), a part of the National STEM Consortium, is working with Certified Network Wadhwani to transform their Cyber Technology Certificate program designed to prepare entry-level cyber technology workers for career Associate, Security+, pathways in IT. The AACC student profile is immensely diverse and the Network+, and A+ can focus is on job seekers with little prior education; industry certifications signal that workers have granted include CompTIA (A+, Security+, Net+) and Cisco (CCNA). the skills to work in entry- Wadhwani is also partnering with the Borough of Manhattan Community level computer support. College of City University of New York & 1199 SEIU Training and From there, acquiring Upgrading Fund in New York for digitization of their Medical Assistant credentials such as Specialist curriculum with an aim to upgrade skills and help workers gain Microsoft Certified stackable credentials. Other collaborators include New York City Small Business Services, Community Health Care Association of New York Professional and Cisco State, and the New York Alliance for Careers in Health care. Certified Network Associate, as well as skills such as SQL, WAN, and TCP/IP can position individuals to work in advanced computer support and network support.48 46 "Identifying High Value Middle-Skill Career Targets," Burning Glass Technologies (2014). 47 "Identifying High Value Middle-Skill Career Targets," Burning Glass Technologies (2014). 48 "Identifying High Value Middle-Skill Career Targets," Burning Glass Technologies (2014). 65