Who Sets the Agenda in Higher Ed, and Why It Matters聽
Over the past few years,聽I鈥檝e聽found myself returning to the concept of聽, a theory I studied during my doctoral work in political communication.聽At its core, agenda-setting suggests that while media and institutions may not tell us what to think, they are highly effective at shaping what we think about.聽By elevating certain issues and allowing others to fade, they define the boundaries of public conversation. While I once applied this lens to political media, I now see a similar dynamic shaping how we talk about higher education.
In recent years, the national narrative has been framed as a choice between skills and credentials, as though learners, employers and institutions must pick a side. But for students moving between education and the workforce, that聽false choice聽does not hold. Colleges that integrate academic learning with workforce development are helping learners build both聽, creating stronger pathways to opportunity,聽mobility聽and long-term success.
Where the Narrative Falls Short聽
These narratives shape expectations long before a student ever sets foot on campus, influencing聽where students apply, what they study, and whether they believe the investment is worth it at all. This matters at scale, where today聽nearly聽聽in the United States have some college but no degree, and聽the聽majority of聽students are balancing education with work and family responsibilities.
Yet the dominant narrative often聽fails to聽reflect how people聽move聽through education and the workforce. Across the country, a more connected reality is already taking shape, where learning and working are聽not separate聽phases but overlapping experiences.
How Employers Are Redefining Readiness
Too often, public discourse suggests that employers have lost confidence in degrees altogether, but the聽data points to something more nuanced:聽Employers are signaling聽that skills and credentials are not competing forces but complementary ones.聽Rather than聽walking away from degrees, they are expanding the definition of readiness.聽
Findings from聽Workforce Decoded: AI, Skills and the Future of Hiring, a recent report from Western Governors University聽(麻豆原创),聽offer聽a broader view of job readiness,聽one that includes聽degrees alongside applied skills,聽experience聽and聽adaptability:
86% of employers see non-degree certificates as valuable indicators of readiness
78% say work experience is equal to or more valuable than a degree
This shift is about building a fuller picture of what it means to be prepared聽because employers are looking for individuals who can apply what they know, adapt to聽change聽and contribute聽in聽real-world environments聽from聽day one. In that context, credentials聽remain聽important, and they are most powerful when paired with聽demonstrated聽capability.
Reframing the Conversation
If agenda-setting shapes what we focus on, then聽when聽the conversation is reduced to degrees versus skills, it narrows how we define value and limits how聽we聽understand聽solutions.聽A more聽accurate聽conversation reflects聽that聽learners are building skills while earning聽credentials,聽employers are evaluating candidates through multiple signals, and institutions are evolving to meet both needs.
The question should move away from whether higher education should prioritize skills or聽degrees and聽focus on whether we are asking the right question in the first place.聽
Because the way we define the problem聽ultimately shapes聽the solutions we pursue. And if we want a system that expands opportunity, supports economic聽mobility聽and聽reflects聽how people聽live聽and work,聽it is critical聽to be just as intentional about聽setting聽the agenda as we are about responding to it.
