Workforce Strategy Center


Publications What Works: BridgeConnect
Stories from the Field
August 2011		 What Is a Bridge Program?
Next: Site Selection and Overview
Previous: Why Bridge Programs?

 

WHAT IS A BRIDGE PROGRAM?
Bridge programs help adult students get the academic, employability, and technical skills they need to enter and succeed in postsecondary education and training programs.

Participants enter bridge programs with low educational skills. In fact, 57 percent of the adults served by BridgeConnect survey respondents possess skills below the tenth-grade level, with 19 percent dropping below the sixth-grade level. These individuals may or may not have a high school diploma or GED. Most have been out of school for a significant amount of time and are not positioned to succeed in postsecondary education and training or advance to better jobs.

To increase educational levels, bridge programs are structured to meet the needs of adult participants. BridgeConnect Survey respondents indicated that they provide instruction at times and places convenient to working adults, offer a “learning-by-doing” format, and allow students to study at their own pace. Most programs are cohort-based, so students can progress through their classes together. The average class size falls between 10 and 19 students; the average program length is 20 weeks.

Successful completers typically move on to college-level education and training in the target field—sometimes gaining sufficient career-focused skills to secure an entry-level skilled job. However, because bridge programs can provide both credentials and information about the next steps on the education pathway, completers can return to education to advance to a higher-skilled position in the field.

By definition, bridge programs have an industry focus. Seventy-five percent of BridgeConnect programs target nursing and allied health. Other occupations and industries served include administrative/office technologies, construction trades, energy, information technology, and manufacturing. Bridge education strategies can be developed and integrated into many different public workforce or education options, including: adult basic skills/GED, English as a Second Language, developmental education, adult vocational/technical education, or WIA-supported programs.

Bridging the Gap
What distinguishes a bridge program from other adult education strategies and makes them successful are:

  • Specific criteria to enter and exit the bridge and connections to points on a career pathway
  • Contextualized instruction or team teaching that integrates basic reading, math, and language skills with industry/occupation knowledge and skills
  • Curriculum for developing skills for professional careers, including working in teams, self-management, project management, and workplace communications
  • Competency-based curriculum designed around, if available, industry-recognized credentials in a target field
  • Articulation to the next step on an education pathway
  • Career development activities that include career exploration and planning, or understanding the world of work
  • Academic support services such as academic advising, tutoring, study skills, and coaching to help successfully move from adult education or remedial coursework to credit or occupational programs
  • “Wrap-around” support services such as assessment and counseling, case management, child care, financial aid, or job and college placement

 

Next: Site Selection and Overview
Previous: Why Bridge Programs?

 

Copyright © 2010 Workforce Strategy Center. All Rights Reserved.

Valid XHTML 1.0 Strict · Valid CSS Level 2