Guided pathways is a comprehensive reform approach that helps community colleges address equity by redesigning programs and support services so that all students have clear pathways to living wage jobs.
One of the key aspects of guided pathways is grouping similar programs together to create academic and career communities that help students explore potential pathways, forge connections with peers and mentors, and practice skills that support both career and life goals. These “metamajors” can also be designed to address historic inequities in the pathways that are open to each student.
When shepherding change frameworks like guided pathways, it can be challenging to align the intended goals with the specific culture and practices of your institution. WestEd has created a series of free resources to support educators and leaders in the development of metamajors to improve student outcomes.
Overview of the Framework
This six-minute video provides a short explanation of strategies to help students select and succeed in academic and career pathways.
Role-Specific Guidance
These practice guides explain how people in various community college positions can implement the core tenants of metamajor redesign in their daily work.
Administrators | Advisors | Articulation Officers | Faculty
Canvas module introducing metamajor redesign through a faculty lens
Explain the Relationships Between Education and Jobs
For common metamajors like Arts & Humanities, Social Sciences, and STEM, Opportunity Maps show the relationship between educational pathways, skills, and jobs, using region-specific labor market data. These resources use California-specific examples and data but are relevant in multiple reform contexts.
Bay Area | Central Valley/Motherlode | Inland Empire | Los Angeles/Orange County | North/Far North | San Diego/Imperial | South Central Coast
Group Your Own Programs
Create your own Opportunity Maps, based on the way your college has grouped its programs and watch a video on how to use the Opportunity Map Builder.
See the Most Common Metamajors at Your College and Who is Enrolled
Look Ahead to Jobs for Bachelor’s Degree Earners
See job types and earnings over time for Californians earning specific bachelor’s degrees, as well as the most common bachelor’s degree pathways to specific jobs.
WestEd offers a suite of services related to Economic Mobility. Learn more.