Higher Education Board Brings Together Tech Tools

Texas education officials have been working this year to advance four pivotal elements to workforce development success: technology, education, training and access. Now, with the help of new digital tools, these goals are beginning to bear fruit.

The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB), the legislatively established agency designed to serve as a resource and champion for higher education, set an ambitious target through its updated Building a Talent Strong Texas strategic plan: ensure that 60 percent of Texans 65 and under attain a degree, certificate or other valuable credential by 2030.

To meet this objective, they've embarked on a journey powered by a singular, comprehensive digital platform known as My Texas Future.

The interactive career and program exploration tool helps users connect their skills and career aspirations with coinciding workforce gaps/needs by inputting and pairing their interests with information about the current job market. It also offers actionable data, providing insights for in-demand occupations within a specific region and allowing users to compare salary prospects and graduation program outlooks.

For returning students, My Texas Future facilitates connections and career guidance from institutional advisers at their preferred college or university, with support available through partnerships with 20 institutions that have joined as program collaborators. In future iterations, students will even be able to explore how their current or planned credits will transfer and apply directly to various degree programs across the state, through a new feature on the website called MapMyPath.

“The future of Texas prosperity relies on developing our Texas talent, and My Texas Future is a one-stop advising shop for Texans to explore the changing landscape of high-demand jobs, understand higher education programs and costs, develop plans and advance their careers,” Commissioner of Higher Education Harrison Keller said in a news release. “This new tool offers resources to help more Texans earn credentials of value so they can participate in our dynamic economy.”

The agency aims to broaden its collaborations with additional colleges and institutions throughout the state, including expanding to K-12 students in the future.

“There’s been a real gap in trustworthy tools and systems when it comes to advising Texans on their postsecondary and career options. That goes for both K-12 students as well, where we know school counselors and advisers have an unmanageable caseload, to working-age Texans, for whom resources are really minimal,” THECB communications specialist Mike Eddleman said.

“With My Texas Future, students receive personalized planning experience. They’re empowered to root their college and career decisions in practical information like real-world earnings and regional job demand, while also making a concrete plan connected to their goals and aspirations.”

Eddleman added that as My Texas Future broadens its scope to include middle and high school students in 2024, they will have the opportunity to embark on early explorations of college and career prospects and access more efficient paths to college admissions.

A version of this story originally ran in Government Technology, a sister publication to Industry Insider — Texas.