缅因大学系统宣布自本学年起，将接受高中生通过“Jobs for Maine Graduates”项目获得的技能证书作为大学学分 1。此举旨在应对该州高等教育入学率下滑的压力，提振学生的高等教育参与意愿 1。经过教师评估，共有8项证书获得认可，涵盖领导力发展、个人成长、创业思维、多元文化基础、路径导航、工作和职业准备、金融素养以及数字素养 1。这些证书必须满足大学级别的学习标准，即包含至少10小时的教学时间并完成相关评估，方可兑换学分 1。
这一政策是缅因州应对高等教育入学率偏低、劳动力老龄化及劳动力短缺等系列举措的一部分 1。数据显示，目前仅有60%的缅因州高中生在毕业后寻求高等教育学位，而全州劳动年龄人口中完成高等教育或培训项目的比例仅为55.5% 1。与此同时，该州内学生入学人数从2021-2022学年的18,000多人降至2025-2026学年的约16,300人，尽管过去五年七所公立大学的整体本科生入学人数微增约1% 1。为此，MaineSpark设定了到2035年使70%的缅因州人接受高等教育或培训的目标 1。
“Jobs for Maine Graduates”项目每年服务13,000名缅因州初高中生，其中超过70%来自低收入家庭，近70%的父母未曾上过大学，约三分之一患有残疾 1。在这些参与者中，仅有54%的男生和46%的低收入学生进入高等教育项目，继续接受高中后教育的残疾学生比例约为32% 1。缅因大学系统校长丹内尔·马洛伊（Dannel Malloy）表示：“我们认为这是正确之举，有助于缅因州为不久的将来可能出现的大学毕业生不足问题做好准备。” 1 “Jobs for Maine Graduates”总裁金·阿克·利普（Kim Acker Lipp）指出：“拥有这一框架能让他们使学习成果可见、可携带，他们可以将其带走。” 1
The University of Maine system has announced that it will accept skill certificates earned by high school students through the Jobs for Maine Graduates program as college credits, starting this academic year 1. This initiative aims to encourage higher education participation amid declining enrollment rates, an aging workforce, and workforce shortages 1. Faculty members have evaluated and approved eight specific certificates for credit, which include leadership development, personal growth, entrepreneurial mindset, multicultural foundations, pathway navigation, job and career readiness, financial literacy, and digital literacy 1. To be eligible for college credit, these certificates must meet college-level learning standards, requiring a minimum of 10 hours of instruction and the completion of an assessment 1. University system Chancellor Dannel Malloy emphasized the necessity of the move, stating, “We think this is the right thing to do to help Maine be prepared for what could be too few college graduates in the not-too-distant future” 1.
The Jobs for Maine Graduates program annually serves 13,000 middle and high school students across the state 1. The demographic of the program highlights its focus on underrepresented groups, with over 70% of participants coming from low-income families, nearly 70% from families where parents did not attend college, and about one-third having a disability 1. College enrollment among these demographics has historically been lower, as only 54% of male students and 46% of low-income students enter higher education programs, while approximately 32% of students with disabilities continue to postsecondary education 1. Jobs for Maine Graduates President Kim Acker Lipp noted the benefits of the new credit framework, saying, “Having this framework is a way for them to make their learning visible, portable. They can take it with them” 1.
This policy is part of a broader series of enrollment and transition initiatives to address the state's educational and workforce challenges 1. Currently, only 60% of Maine students pursue a higher education degree after high school, and just 55.5% of the state's working-age population has completed a higher education or training program 1. To combat these trends, the MaineSpark initiative has set a goal to have 70% of Mainers receive higher education or training by 2035 1. Enrollment data reflects the ongoing pressure on the system, with in-state student enrollment dropping from over 18,000 in the 2021-2022 academic year to approximately 16,300 in the 2025-2026 academic year 1. However, overall undergraduate enrollment across the seven public universities has seen a slight increase of about 1% over the past five years 1.
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