Jobs in 2031 will likely require postsecondary education

Analysis from the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce showed 72% of jobs will require postsecondary education or training by 2031. Oregon ranks 11th for most jobs requiring additional education.

Nicole Smith, chief economist at the center and a co-author of the report, said there could be a skills shortage in the market if the U.S. does not prepare.

“Some of the concern we have is that we’re not producing enough people with the credentials, education, the skills, the training that we need for those jobs that will appear in the future,” Smith explained.

Between 2021 and 2031, the report found an average of 238,000 jobs will become available annually in Oregon. It said 168,000 of those openings will be for workers with postsecondary training of some sort.

Smith emphasized the window is closing for workers who only have a high school degree and opportunities need to be set up to ensure they can get further education.”Those that don’t have the key to the future — and that key is a postsecondary vocational certificate, certification, some type of credential beyond high school — if you don’t have that key, you run the risk of being left behind,” Smith stressed.

Smith added greater education will not only be important for people who just have high school degrees.

“Even if you’re standing in a particular type of job, if you want to move forward, you want to advance, you want to get to be the manager in that profession, you want to get to be the team leader, a lot more education and training is required in order for you to advance to that level,” Smith pointed out.