PHOENIX--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Defying conventional thinking about the difficulty of finding a job in the current recession, Dr. Tracey Wilen‐Daugenti, Vice President and Managing Director of Apollo Research Institute and visiting scholar at Stanford University’s Media X, announces four Leap Year 2012 trends and career prospects. In her new book, Society 3.0: How Technology Is Reshaping Education, Work and Society, Dr. Wilen-Daugenti outlines little-known career opportunities in business, education, and technology—especially for women.
More than 23 million Americans are now out of work or underemployed, and there are approximately 4.3 unemployed people for every job opening. Leap Day, February 29, offers Americans an extra day to turn the tables on the recession and identify new job outlooks for the next 4-year cycle and new skills to adapt to a changing workforce.
“Career opportunities will come from previously unrecognized, emerging trends,” said Dr. Wilen-Daugenti. “Trailblazing small businesses, visionary female leaders, nontraditional students, and innovative educational institutions will lead the way.”
Based on research conducted at Apollo Research Institute, Dr.Wilen-Daugenti’s Society 3.0 outlines how Americans will live, learn, work and connect in the future, and identifies four trends that are opening up new career possibilities:
1) Tiny but mighty: Small businesses and self-employment are
job-creation powerhouses.
America’s small and medium-sized
businesses and startups create the most jobs during recessions. Hispanic
Americans’ gains are particularly strong. The number of self-employed
Hispanics has doubled since the year 2000.
2) Women rising: Women will lead U.S. businesses to new
heights.
Women business owners employ 35% more people than all
the Fortune 500 companies combined. Women owned 10.1 million U.S. firms,
employed more than 13 million people and generated $1.9 trillion in
sales as of 2008. Women-owned businesses are projected to employ more
than 15 million people by 2018. Women now have excellent prospects for
entering traditionally male-dominated fields such as science,
technology, and engineering.
3) “Nontraditional” students rule: Education and work have
converged as a lifelong pursuit.
The majority of today’s
college students are “nontraditional” learners, including those who are
23 years of age or older, finance their own education, and work part- or
full-time while attending classes. Nontraditional students are a diverse
population, but include first-generation college-goers, reentry
students, single mothers, Baby Boomers, retirees, and those seeking to
advance in their current careers or switch fields. Those who earn a
college degree while employed can expect to earn on average a 22% return
on their educational investment, compared to an average 12% return for
traditional full-time students.
4) Online and offline merge: Future education will be a
combination of society’s needs and technology’s strengths.
Technology
has advanced to the point that students, instructors, and educational
institutions no longer need to segregate the education experience into
online and offline experiences. This provides more options for students,
and allows educators to integrate familiar, engaging technologies such
as video, gaming, social media, and mobile devices into education
programs. Savvy students can leverage their technological skills as
marketable work skills when applying for a job or a promotion.
Learn more at Society 3.0: How Technology Is Reshaping Education, Work and Society.
About Apollo Research Institute
Apollo Research Institute is a nonpartisan research division of Apollo Group, Inc. Apollo Research Institute conducts research on issues of critical importance to higher education and the workforce, and provides research-based recommendations to help leaders ensure today’s workers remain employable tomorrow. Visit www.apolloresearchinstitute.com.
About Apollo Group, Inc.
Apollo Group, Inc. is one of the world's largest private education providers and has been in the education business for more than 35 years. The Company offers innovative and distinctive educational programs and services both online and on-campus at the undergraduate, master's and doctoral levels through its subsidiaries: University of Phoenix, Apollo Global, Institute for Professional Development and College for Financial Planning. The Company's programs and services are provided in 40 states and the District of Columbia; Puerto Rico; Latin America; and Europe, as well as online throughout the world.
For more information about Apollo Group, Inc. and its subsidiaries, call (800) 990-APOL or visit the Company's website at http://www.apollogrp.edu.