New Study Shows American Workforce Restless;One-Quarter of Workforce Planning Career Change in...

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 24, 1999--

Half of working Americans would consider changing their career and nearly 25 percent are planning to make a career change in the next 12 months. Only three percent of working adults say they are satisfied with their current job.

Americans rank the opportunity to make more money (29.5%) as their number one reason for changing careers. Personal happiness is second (23.7%) in importance. Job satisfaction (6.5%) and better

The findings are part of a new survey released today by Career Education Corporation, a leading provider of private, postsecondary education. The nationwide survey, conducted among employed adults 18 and older, measured job satisfaction and employment trends in the American workforce.

"This survey underscores how dramatically attitudes in the workforce have changed in recent years," said John M. Larson, president and chief executive officer of Career Education Corporation. "Americans don't fear career change - they embrace it. They aren't sitting back and looking for the `cradle to grave' jobs anymore. Instead, they're working to improve their lives significantly by developing the career skills they need to advance in the new economy."

     Among the key findings:

-    "Career changers" making more money. More than half of the survey
     respondents (54%) said they have changed careers. Of these, 60
     percent obtained additional education or training to prepare for
     their new careers. More than three quarters (76%) reported their
     earnings have increased, with 15 percent saying their earnings
     have at least doubled.

-    Current level of income, education have little impact on career
     change decisions. Among Americans who have considered a career
     change, nearly half (47%) of those making $50,000 or more a year
     said they have considered it, close to the 63 percent earning
     less than $15,000 per year.

     The same percentage (47%) of those with high school and
     postgraduate educations said they have considered a career
     change.

-    Technology is not a barrier to career change. Only two percent of
     respondents said they were afraid of learning the technology
     needed to start a new career. Age was the primary reason named
     for making a career change difficult, cited by 11 percent of
     respondents.

-    Traditional colleges and career training schools nearly even as
     educational choice for career changers. Nearly 17 percent of
     respondents said they would choose a traditional college for the
     education needed to change careers; more than 15 percent said
     they would choose a career training school.

     Among those surveyed, 40 percent said it would not be difficult
     to change careers.

One quarter of the respondents said they purposefully selected their current career, while 18 percent said school, and another 18 percent said personal contacts, led them to their current career. Only nine percent said they happened upon their career by chance or luck.

Only 19 percent of survey respondents said they would never consider a career change. Overall, the survey showed virtually no difference in attitudes between men and women considering a career change.

"The trend we see among career changers is that they want more control over their future," Larson said. "Having specific job skills puts them in a position to withstand corporate consolidations and downsizing, and qualify for positions in high growth industries."

The survey was conducted among a national sample of 682 employed adults, aged 18 and older, with a confidence factor of 95 percent. Market Facts, Inc., a national, independent research firm, conducted the survey.

Career Education Corporation is one of the largest providers of private, for-profit postsecondary education in North America. The Company currently operates 25 campuses in 14 states and two Canadian provinces. CEC schools enjoy long operating histories and offer a wide variety of bachelor's degree, associate degree and diploma programs in career-oriented disciplines within the Company's core curricula of information technology, visual communication and design technologies, business studies and culinary arts.