Test Finds College Graduates Lack Skills for White-Collar Jobs

[Caliga]

Young people suck.

I hate old people more.  Basically, everyone not close to my age sucks.

[grumbler]

Young people suck.

I hate old people more.  Basically, everyone not close to my age sucks.

Agreed, except for the exception you grant to people close to your age.  They suck, too. 

[Martinus]

It's been a well-known fact for centuries that our current generation is not quite measuring up.

[CountDeMoney]

I would take one grumbler over a dozen Millennials.  Especially since he eats less.

[Martinus]

I would be surprised if the results were otherwise - you cannot dilute something the way we've diluted the college education without having an impact on the overall quality.

Plus, isn't this just a long way of saying that college graduates still have a lot to learn about how the real world actually operates? Hasn't that always been the case?

You should read the article more carefully.  The claim isn't that they don't know things about the real world.  The claim is that they are not learning basic reading and logic skills.  Seedy actually bolded that part to make it easy for you.  Ironic isn't it? 

The test doesn't cover subject-area knowledge; rather it assesses things like critical thinking, analytical reasoning, document literacy, writing and communication—essentially mimicking the baseline demands for professionals.

We need to introduce more multiple choice tests to address these failings.

[Martinus]

Young people suck.

I hate old people more.  Basically, everyone not close to my age sucks.

I addition to young people and old people, I also hate people of my own generation.

[Warspite]

Skills needed in the modern white-collar workplace:

• Basic project management - knowing what a deliverable or a depedency is
• E-mail etiquette
• Diary management
• Brevity in PowerPoint
• Familiarity with track changes
• Use of MS Word styles
• SPREADSHEETS

Most degrees teach none of these things, which is why I'm always amused when we are told that we Need More Graduates to Be Competitive in a Modern Economy. Education is not the same thing training in skills. (Obviously does not apply for sciences/engineering/languages.)

[grumbler]

Skills needed in the modern white-collar workplace:

• Basic project management - knowing what a deliverable or a depedency is
• E-mail etiquette
• Diary management
• Brevity in PowerPoint
• Familiarity with track changes
• Use of MS Word styles
• SPREADSHEETS

Most degrees teach none of these things, which is why I'm always amused when we are told that we Need More Graduates to Be Competitive in a Modern Economy. Education is not the same thing training in skills. (Obviously does not apply for sciences/engineering/languages.)

I agree.  I would argue that these are skills that would be really useful in college, as well, and that would be useful to the non-college-bound, so they should be taught in high school.  University should be about education, not training.

[CountDeMoney]

Skills needed in the modern white-collar workplace:

• Basic project management - knowing what a deliverable or a depedency is
• E-mail etiquette
• Diary management
• Brevity in PowerPoint
• Familiarity with track changes
• Use of MS Word styles
• SPREADSHEETS

Smells like certifications, not degrees.   

[crazy canuck]

"Deliverable" is one of the most overused, misused and quickly becoming meaningless words used in business today.  Everything is being labeled as a "deliverable".  Soon Ed will be giving his daily bowel deliverable reports.

[Jacob]

"Deliverable" is one of the most overused, misused and quickly becoming meaningless words used in business today.  Everything is being labeled as a "deliverable".  Soon Ed will be giving his daily bowel deliverable reports.

I take it to mean "the thing(s) you are supposed to provide at a certain point in time". Do you have a preferred alternate word or phrase?

[grumbler]

"Deliverable" is one of the most overused, misused and quickly becoming meaningless words used in business today.  Everything is being labeled as a "deliverable".  Soon Ed will be giving his daily bowel deliverable reports.

I take it to mean "the thing(s) you are supposed to provide at a certain point in time". Do you have a preferred alternate word or phrase?

Just because CC thinks it is over-used, it still means what it means.  I don't think that there is a good synonym, though one could refer to some deliverables by other names (and maybe this is what CC is calling for - he isn't particularly articulate in his complaint).

[Martinus]

Skills needed in the modern white-collar workplace:

• Basic project management - knowing what a deliverable or a depedency is
• E-mail etiquette
• Diary management
• Brevity in PowerPoint
• Familiarity with track changes
• Use of MS Word styles
• SPREADSHEETS

Most degrees teach none of these things, which is why I'm always amused when we are told that we Need More Graduates to Be Competitive in a Modern Economy. Education is not the same thing training in skills. (Obviously does not apply for sciences/engineering/languages.)

Let's not forget dairy management and etiquette. Many a promising career was cut in the bud because someone ate someone else's yoghurt or kept cottage cheese too long in the cafeteria fridge.

[CountDeMoney]

There's nothing in there about voicemail.

[Baron von Schtinkenbutt]

There's nothing in there about voicemail.

You might not have voicemail.