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Careers: Airline Industry
The COVID pandemic forced airlines and all their related and ancillary businesses to shed employees. Consequently, as things ramp back up post-COIVD, there are tens of thousands of job opportunities in the sector. Your community college has the resources to prepare you and refresh your skills for new opportunities.

The COVID pandemic of 2020-2021 wreaked havoc on the airline industry. Passenger traffic dropped 61% in North America and 60 to 70% worldwide. 2020 was the worst year ever for the airline industry, according to the IATA. Both the travel and the airline industry had to downsize. That meant offering retirement packages to some employees and furloughing others. Many employees were laid off or terminated as the airlines struggled to cope with the sudden downturn in passenger traffic. Approximately 400,000 people lost their jobs due to the loss of business. When an entire industry sheds such a large number of employees, severe downsizing has a ripple effect throughout all the related and ancillary businesses that service the airlines. In 2020 that ripple effect was profound. However, 2021 saw things beginning to get back to normal.

Training for new opportunities

When businesses are hiring, your community college offers the training you need to take advantage of the many opportunities now available in the airline industry. In addition, when most airline industry employees took those retirement packages, they would not be returning to work for the companies that laid them off. That, in turn, creates openings for people like you who want to be part of an industry with many working parts.

Why work at an airport?

Read Six Reasons the Airport is the Best Place to Work to get an idea of what it's like to work at an airport. The typical mid-sized airport has

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Careers: Teaching

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Careers: Teaching
Discover how community colleges can help you embark on a teaching career, from exploring education courses to preparing for teaching certifications. Learn about alternative routes to certification and how to navigate local job markets.

Are you thinking about teaching?

Want to find out more about the profession?

  • Whether you have just graduated from high school or have been out in the workforce for decades, the teaching bug won't let go when the teaching bug bites.
  • This is where your community college can be helpful. Why? Because its website allows you to do some virtual exploration. You will need to do your four-year, master's, or doctorate at a four-year institution.
  • However, let's say you want to know more about what teaching involves.
  • Perhaps you're curious about how your language skills might fit into teaching credentials.
  • Maybe you already have a bachelor's degree in a specific subject area, such as mathematics or physics but have never taken any education courses.
  • Your community college's website is excellent for looking for information and answers to your questions.

Explore the possibilities.

As I said before, your community college can be helpful.

  • First, search its website using the search term "education." You will get results similar to what I got below when I searched for "education" on the Prince Georges County Community College, Maryland website.
  • Ignore Continuing Education and Driver Education and similar search results for the moment, and explore the Education Department link.
  • Now you have several choices to explore.
  • With any luck, you will find more information to help you decide whether teaching still appeals.

This video suggests 25 things you should know about becoming a teacher.

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Declining Enrollment and the Widening Gender Gap

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Declining Enrollment and the Widening Gender Gap
Community college enrollment is rebounding in 2026, but a growing gender gap remains. Explore the latest trends, challenges, and opportunities shaping higher education.

The last few years have been difficult for students at every stage of their educational journey. The decision to attend college is a major one even in normal circumstances, and recent economic uncertainty, changing workforce demands, and the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have only complicated that decision for many students.

While community colleges have historically served as an affordable and accessible pathway to higher education, the sector experienced significant enrollment declines during and immediately after the pandemic. Today, however, the conversation has shifted. Enrollment is beginning to recover, but another challenge continues to draw attention from educators and policymakers: the widening gender gap.

In this article, we'll explore community college enrollment trends and examine why men continue to be underrepresented in higher education.

Community College Enrollment Before the Pandemic

Before the pandemic, community colleges played a critical role in American higher education. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), millions of students attended public two-year institutions, representing a substantial share of all undergraduate enrollment.

Community colleges have traditionally attracted a diverse student population, including recent high school graduates, working adults, military veterans, first-generation college students, and learners seeking affordable alternatives to four-year universities.

When it comes to demographics, community colleges have historically enrolled a significant percentage of Hispanic, Black, and Asian students. They have also served as an important access point for students from lower-income backgrounds.

There were disparities in terms of gender as well. Even before the pandemic, women represented the

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Job Search Tips for Community College Graduates in 2026

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Job Search Tips for Community College Graduates in 2026
Learn practical 2026 job search strategies for community college graduates, including networking, resume building, interview preparation, and using career resources to launch a successful career.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. unemployment rate remains historically low in 2026, though hiring conditions vary by industry and region. While many employers continue to recruit community college graduates, competition for entry-level positions remains strong in some fields. As a community college graduate, you may find your job search looks different than it did just a few years ago, with many employers using a combination of virtual and in-person hiring processes.

Read on to learn some simple tips for finding a job and how to ace your interview.

10 Simple Job Search Tips for Graduates

Even in a typical year, graduating from community college and looking for a job can be stressful. Your first job out of school may not be your dream job, but it’s a steppingstone in the path that leads to a successful career.

With many job seekers entering the workforce each year, your job search may be a little longer and more challenging than it normally might be. The best thing you can do is make sure you’re as prepared as you can be to enter the workforce and follow a few simple tips when starting your job search.

Here are 10 simple tips to help you with your job search:

  • Be flexible. Depending on what you studied in community college and what industry you hope to enter, there may be an abundance of jobs waiting to be filled or very few. You should be prepared to

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How Has the Pandemic Affected Community Colleges?

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How Has the Pandemic Affected Community Colleges?
The world was ill-prepared to find itself in the midst of a global pandemic and the effects of the past year will linger for many years to come. No industry was unaffected and the pandemic brought to light inequities in many, particularly the U.S. education system. Read on to learn how the pandemic has affected community colleges and what students can expect in the future.

The coronavirus pandemic has hit the country hard, but it has been particularly difficult for America’s working class. Low-wage jobs were eliminated by the millions and people without college degrees faced the highest rates of unemployment. Over a year into the pandemic, community colleges – the education system created to help America’s working class – continue to struggle.

According to data from the National Student Clearinghouse, enrollment has declined by nearly 10% at over 1,000 two-year colleges since last spring. Added to a similar drop in enrollment last fall, these numbers more than double the decline in enrollment seen at four-year colleges and universities. Enrollment has declined even more sharply among Black and Hispanic students.

These numbers hint at the many ways the COVID-19 pandemic has affected community colleges and highlight the challenges these schools face if they are to survive. Keep reading to learn more about the current state of community colleges in the U.S. and what the future may hold for them.

Which States Have Been Hit Hardest?

The COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t left a single corner of the world untouched but under the Trump administration the United States saw millions of deaths which left the country in shock. Around the country, students were forced to choose between abandoning their plans and enroll in college or accept an altered version involving remote education. Nearly half of all American households report that a prospective college student cancelled their plans to attend community college in

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