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Delaware Data for Career Pathway Planning
    Introduction 

Employment data at the state and regional level play an important role in the approval of new Career Technical Education (CTE) programs. Such programs are more likely to be approved if there are sizeable projected job openings for occupations related to the educational program’s pathway and cluster. Another factor that supports program approval is a projected average wage for occupations in the pathway/cluster that is higher than the average wage for the state.

The federal Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006 includes several references to High Skill, High Wage, or High Demand occupations. Not all high wage occupations require high skills (Bachelor’s degree or higher). In the next ten years nearly half of the job openings in the U.S. and Delaware will require middle-level skills.

The Delaware Department of Education, in collaboration with Delaware Department of Labor, developed definitions for "middle-skill, high-skill, high-wage, and high-demand" occupations as follows:

  • Middle Skill: Occupations requiring some type of post-secondary education (such as an apprenticeship, certification, or an Associate’s degree) but not a Bachelor’s degree; or High School education with some work experience or at least one month on-the-job training or credential attainment.

  • High Skill: Occupations requiring at least a Bachelor’s degree, or Associates’ Degree with either a required Residency/Internship or five years of experience.

  • High Wage: Occupations paying more than the Delaware all-industry statewide median wage ($46,700 in 2021).

  • High Demand: Occupations with at least 4 annual job openings due to growth in Delaware.

These designations of occupations help direct investment into educational programs that have the potential to be the most effective for student outcomes. Since program completers are likely to find employment in a wide range of related occupations under a career pathway or cluster, an attempt has been made to designate career pathways and clusters with the Middle Skill, High Skill, High Wage and High Demand designations. This framework provides the basis for linking program completion with cluster-wide job placement data to evaluate the effectiveness of CTE programs.

For more information, please contact the Delaware Department of Education by phone at 302.735.4015 or by email to Nicole Lawless at Nicole.Lawless@doe.k12.de.us.

U.S. and Mid-Atlantic States: Labor Market Summary Data
RegionEmployment
2021
Employment
Change 2020-30
Employment
Growth 2020-30
Avg. Wage
2021
United States140,886,310   11,879,900      7.7%      $58,260    
Delaware435,600   42,030      9.1%      $59,820    
District of Columbia661,960   97,750      12.9%      $98,370    
Maryland2,546,000   313,020      10.0%      $65,900    
New Jersey3,850,220   453,040      11.1%      $67,120    
Pennsylvania5,583,410   451,720      7.6%      $55,490    
Virginia3,753,230   402,150      10.0%      $62,330    
Delaware: Labor Market Summary Data by Career Clusters
Career ClusterMSHSHWHDEmployment
2021
Employment
Change 2020-30
Employment
Growth 2020-30
Avg. Wage
2021
Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources   3,620       330           11.3%           $36,174    
Architecture & Construction  25,090       3,610           12.7%           $55,635    
Arts, Audio/Video Technology & Communications 1,800       50           1.8%           $57,331    
Business Management & Administration   70,070       50           0.1%           $63,141    
Education & Training  21,980       1,320           5.3%           $63,458    
Finance 19,190       580           3.2%           $90,161    
Government & Public Administration 4,440       370           3.5%           $63,392    
Health Science 44,550       7,400           16.4%           $75,608    
Hospitality & Tourism   52,780       9,620           18.9%           $31,092    
Human Services   11,510       2,150           14.9%           $44,729    
Information Technology  14,490       310           2.6%           $100,968    
Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security  18,290       1,080           6.1%           $45,282    
Manufacturing   22,250       880           3.5%           $47,670    
Marketing  48,760       1,910           4.6%           $51,447    
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics  5,480       120           2.2%           $108,947    
Transportation, Distribution & Logistics  32,120       2,650           9.0%           $45,818    
Mid-Atlantic States: Labor Market Summary Data by Career Clusters
Career ClusterRegionEmployment
2021
Employment
Change 2020-30
Employment
Growth 2020-30
Avg. Wage
2021
Agriculture, Food & Natural ResourcesMid-Atlantic148,230 23,380     8.1%       $61,720 
Architecture & ConstructionMid-Atlantic963,440 100,470     8.7%       $59,272 
Arts, Audio/Video Technology & CommunicationsMid-Atlantic178,850 12,560     5.1%       $62,496 
Business Management & AdministrationMid-Atlantic3,344,930 98,560     3.2%       $70,991 
Education & TrainingMid-Atlantic938,350 108,490     10.9%       $72,977 
FinanceMid-Atlantic701,640 35,660     5.3%       $91,540 
Government & Public AdministrationMid-Atlantic156,980 8,520     5.2%       $71,033 
Health ScienceMid-Atlantic1,534,120 206,860     13.7%       $77,182 
Hospitality & TourismMid-Atlantic1,704,700 369,900     20.4%       $31,235 
Human ServicesMid-Atlantic487,660 106,850     17.2%       $46,436 
Information TechnologyMid-Atlantic591,350 34,400     9.7%       $104,249 
Law, Public Safety, Corrections & SecurityMid-Atlantic687,580 45,080     6.8%       $73,580 
ManufacturingMid-Atlantic966,970 68,270     6.7%       $49,868 
MarketingMid-Atlantic1,712,460 79,570     4.3%       $53,706 
Science, Technology, Engineering & MathematicsMid-Atlantic314,360 21,970     6.7%       $108,955 
Transportation, Distribution & LogisticsMid-Atlantic1,339,690 156,130     11.2%       $45,361 

 

United States: Labor Market Summary Data by Career Clusters
Career ClusterRegionEmployment
2021
Employment
Change 2020-30
Employment
Growth 2020-30
Avg. Wage
2021
Agriculture, Food & Natural ResourcesUnited States1,518,480 173,100     5.6%       $48,970 
Architecture & ConstructionUnited States8,796,570 611,200     5.9%       $57,746 
Arts, Audio/Video Technology & CommunicationsUnited States1,589,050 181,700     7.8%       $63,031 
Business Management & AdministrationUnited States26,285,870 132,900     0.5%       $65,178 
Education & TrainingUnited States7,896,980 897,900     10.6%       $68,842 
FinanceUnited States5,662,520 183,500     3.3%       $85,181 
Government & Public AdministrationUnited States1,268,200 62,300     5.0%       $66,312 
Health ScienceUnited States12,594,510 1,486,400     12.5%       $77,927 
Hospitality & TourismUnited States15,732,660 2,940,000     17.1%       $30,769 
Human ServicesUnited States3,697,960 730,900     14.5%       $46,328 
Information TechnologyUnited States3,988,890 171,500     7.5%       $99,422 
Law, Public Safety, Corrections & SecurityUnited States5,146,550 359,500     7.4%       $66,649 
ManufacturingUnited States9,881,020 350,000     3.4%       $48,322 
MarketingUnited States15,032,270 89,700     0.6%       $51,319 
Science, Technology, Engineering & MathematicsUnited States2,183,720 170,300     7.6%       $106,551 
Transportation, Distribution & LogisticsUnited States11,530,850 862,100     7.6%       $45,464 

 

 • A blank numerical table cell indicates the data is not available.
 • Sources: Delaware Department of Labor and U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics
 • Mid-Atlantic includes Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.
 • MS, HS, HW and HD are abbreviations for Middle Skill, High Skill, High Wage and High Demand Occupations
 • MS & HS Cluster/Pathway: A Cluster/Pathway is designated as MS if, within the cluster/pathway, the percentage of MS occupations is at least thirty (30) percent
   of the total number of occupations reported for that cluster/pathway. The same process is used to determine HS clusters/pathways.
 • HW & HD Cluster/Pathway: A Cluster/Pathway is designated as HW if, within the cluster/pathway, the total employment for HW occupations is greater than the
   total employment for non-HW occupations. The same process is used to determine HD for clusters/pathways.