Sandra came to the United States after college with high hopes. Her version of the American Dream included a career in advertising, but that never happened. 

“I’m like, OK, I’m going to get me a job at an advertising agency here in the United States,” she said. “It’s going to be awesome. And I started sending hundreds of resumes, thousands of applications.”

“Nothing came out of it.” 

A native of Brazil, she spent 10 years applying for positions that interested her. In the meantime, she worked two restaurant jobs, often clocking 80 hours a week. 

“When my daughter walked for the first time, I really wasn't there to experience that,” Sandra said. 

She began to question whether she would ever break free from the cycle. 

“Talent is everywhere in our country,” said Rebecca Taber Staehelin, co-founder of Merit America. This national nonprofit helps people like Sandra — i.e., stuck in less meaningful (often low-wage) jobs — find fast, flexible pathways into family-sustaining careers.

 

 

“They’re in jobs that pay less than $30,000 a year,” Taber Staehelin explained. “They don’t have the time or the money to go to college, and so they’re stuck.” 

This cycle is hurting employers, too. “There are 10 million unfilled jobs,” explained Taber Staehelin’s co-founder, Connor Diemand-Yauman. “So from the employer perspective, you’re in this war for talent, and so many employers are losing this war.”

Taber Staehelin and Diemand-Yauman founded Merit America to serve the 53 million working adults in this country for whom less fulfilling work has become a life sentence because of degree requirements. The two have built a new talent pathway to bridge the gap between underemployed working adults and employers hungry for talent. 

The organization upskills hardworking adults who want more fulfilling work and connects them to employers in a matter of months. 

The results are good for both sides. Workers transition into meaningful careers that support them and their families, and employers gain a well-trained workforce of people who already know how to work hard. 

“Imagine a world where, if you give folks the support and opportunities they need to self-actualize, the American Dream is possible,” Diemand-Yauman said. 

Could this new approach help reopen the American Dream for millions? 

Has the American Dream become elitist?

America needs to redefine pathways to success. Today, there often appear to be only two options — college or no college — and only one is the “correct” path.

“We both grew up believing that the American Dream was everything it was supposed to be: ‘Anyone who works hard can get ahead,’” said Taber Staehelin. “But over the last few decades, it’s turned into, ‘Anyone who has a college degree can get ahead.’”

This shift has left millions of hardworking Americans like Sandra stuck in low-wage jobs, unable to access better opportunities. 

As Diemand-Yauman explained, “Under 40% of individuals have college degrees, and yet 50% of jobs require one. The result is that we have this mismatch where workers are being boxed out of opportunities that they are actually qualified for, while employers can’t get the talent that they need.”

The mismatch creates challenges for both workers and employers. Companies like Intact Technology, a rapidly growing tech business, face a severe talent shortage. 

Jesse White, CEO of Intact, said the talent shortage is his company’s biggest problem. “In order to keep up with the demand in the industry, we’ve been asked by our software partners to double in size every year for the next three years,” he explained. “In our industry, that’s 250,000 new certified professionals. It is literally impossible that those folks will come through traditional college.”

“We have to consider the alternative paths.” 

Breaking the spell of the college degree

A generation ago, college degrees weren’t the hot ticket they are today. 

“So many of the jobs that require college degrees didn’t actually require one two or three decades ago,” said Taber Staehelin. “[Companies are] coming from this place of, oh, that’s an easy proxy, but it’s a proxy that’s actually serving against the interests of our employers and of our country.”

After a decade of working behind the counter, Sandra discovered Merit America. In just over 12 weeks, she completed an IT training program and secured an entry-level role at Intact Technology. It was a game changer for her and for Intact. 

“Sandra very quickly was taking on new opportunities and improving the operations of Intact,” said White. She is now a manager, and her success has inspired the company to deepen its partnership with Merit America. 

“She’s why we have a partnership with Merit America,” said White. “It is the best single source of applicants that we have to tap into because if you can take anybody and within six months, give them a skill set, that’s not only extraordinary for them, it’s great for the economy. As a business, without that, we’re literally not going to be able to keep up with our competitors.” 

“That is the opportunity that employers have to break the spell of the college degree,” said Diemand-Yauman. “This myth that it is the only way to vet for exceptional talent.”

The advantages of workforce candidates v. college graduates

Sandra’s story illustrates the potential of rethinking hiring practices to focus on skills and potential rather than traditional credentials, but what does that look like? 

How do companies wean themselves off college degree requirements? 

Diemand-Yauman and Taber Staehelin encourage employers to reconsider their hiring criteria. 

“Let’s ask what actually matters for these jobs,” said Diemand-Yauman. “We need employers and hiring managers to get really clear about what they actually care about. What are they using the college degree to vet for?” 

By focusing on the skills and attributes that truly matter — such as emotional intelligence, a growth mindset, and the ability to learn rapidly — employers can tap into a vast, underutilized talent pool.

Angela Butler, workforce development manager at Intact, highlighted a key difference between candidates who have work experience versus traditional college graduates. 

“My workforce candidates, they know how to work,” she said. “They have been in the workforce, and that experience cannot be taught.” 

Intact’s success with workers coming from nontraditional pathways has led to rapid growth for the company. “We had 85% growth just last year alone and brought 130 new people into the business,” said White. “And now 40-50% of the people that we’re bringing in will come through this nontraditional approach to hiring.”

Sandra’s journey from struggling immigrant to successful manager is a modern-day embodiment of the American Dream. “My husband tells me, ‘You are the portrait of the American Dream, right? You came here with nothing, and you worked yourself into where you wanted to be,’” she shared.

Taber Staehelin and Diemand-Yauman’s work with Merit America is driven by a vision of a future where the American Dream is once again accessible to everyone. 

“This is a solvable problem. We can help our employers get the talent they’re looking for,” said Taber Staehelin. “We can help anyone who wants to work hard get ahead. And when we do that, everyone wins.”

“The stat that we’re most proud of is that we have driven over a billion dollars in wage gains,” said Diemand-Yauman. “These are a billion dollars that are going back to their families, into their communities, and into our country.”

Merit America is supported by the Charles Koch Foundation, which, as part of the Stand Together community, funds cutting-edge research and helps expand postsecondary educational options.

Learn more about Stand Together’s efforts to transform the future of work and explore ways you can partner with us.