More About Career Pathways

Oregon’s community colleges are committed to easing transitions for students to help them get the skills they need to compete in the labor market. Credentials, certificates, and degrees make a difference in the workplace and in increasing earnings. Learn more about Oregon’s Pathways to Advancement initiative.

So, what is a Career Pathway, anyway?

Read the state's definition of a Career Pathway in a community college.
Investigate why the PCC/MHCC Career Pathways make such a difference in student lives.
Learn about the Career Pathways efforts at other community colleges across Oregon and around the country.
Roadmaps are often created as an advising tool to visuallly represent how an educational program relates to the labor market at varying levels. To learn more, please visit our portfolio of roadmaps.

High School Students, Guidance Counselors, and Parents:

Are you in high school and interested learning more about careers and academic programs at Oregon colleges and universities to get a start on discovering and planning a fulfilling career? PAVTEC has developed a website to guide high school students, parents, counselors, teachers, educators and others with resources around a particular career path.

Recent Best Practices & Reports

Guidelines for Chunking Professional-Technical Programs in Community Colleges. Kate Dins, PhD (2005).

Career Pathways Glossary: Toward a Common Language for Career Pathways in Oregon. This glossary is designed for use by Oregon educators, administrators, and practioners to assist in developing Career Pathways that provide education and career options for students and meet the workforce needs of employers. Oregon Pathways Marketing and Communication Committee, July 2007.

Meeting the Needs of Community College Students: Developing sustainable web-based advising tools, Andrew Roessler and Gabriel McGovern, Student Success Conference, Portland OR., February 2007.
Aligning Public Resources to Support Individual and Regional Economic Advancement in the Knowledge Economy, Davis Jenkins, Workforce Strategy Center. April 2006.
Building Pathways to Success for Low-Skills Adult Students: Lessons for Community College Policy and Practice from a Statewide Longitudinal Study, David Prince and Davis Jenkins, Community College Research Center. April 2005 ill.
Strengthening Transitions by Encouraging Career Pathways: A Look at State Policies and Practices, Katherine L. Hughes and Melinda Mechur Karp, League for Innovation in the Community College. March 2006.
Pathways to Student Success: Case Studies from the College and Career Transitions Initiative, edited by Laurance J. Warford, League for Innovation in the Community College. March 2006.
Bridges to Careers for Low-Skilled Adults: A Program Development Guide, Women Employed with Chicago Jobs Council and UIC Great Cities Institute. November 2005.
Pathways to College Access and Success, United States Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education. September, 2005.
Breaking Through: Helping Low-Skilled Adults Enter & Succeed in College & Careers, National Council for Workforce Education & Jobs for the Future. November 2004.
Building Bridges to College and Career, Workforce Strategy Center. January 2003.
Building a Career Pathways System, Executive Summary Building a Career Pathways System, (unabridged report) Workforce Strategy Center. August 2002.
Building a Career Pathway System: Promising Practices in Community College-Centered Workforce Development, Workforce Strategy Center. Fall 2002.
Job Developers Network - Career Pathways Presentation. Oregon Commission for the Blind, July 18, 2008