Career and Technical Education

An overarching goal for our state’s educational system is to prepare students to lead healthy and productive lives, whether they enter the workforce immediately after high school or go on to institutions of higher education. Career and technical education gives students the real-world skills they need to succeed in the work world.

New Jersey’s county vocational-technical school districts and its comprehensive high schools throughout the state offer a variety of programs and opportunities for students.

NJSBA has a variety of informational resources on the topic of career and technical education.

Schools must prepare students for an evolving job market, one influenced by technology, automation and artificial intelligence. “

– Task Force on Educational Opportunities for the Non-College Bound Learner

Report: New Dimensions in Career and Technical Education

In February 2025, the NJSBA Committee on Educational Opportunities for the Career-Focused Learner released a new report that updates the 2018 report (below) and examines topics such as enrollment capacity, staffing, programming, facilities and funding of career and technical education in New Jersey. The report also includes profiles of programs at New Jersey public schools.

View report

Report: Educational Opportunities for the Non-College-Bound Learner (2018)

In this report, an NJSBA task force made 69 recommendations, identifying strategies to ensure that our schools are meeting the needs of the career-focused student.

View report

Articles on Career and Technical Education

Below is a sampling of School Leader and School Board Notes articles on career and technical education.

Explore NJSBA’s multimedia resources on CTE.

Illustration of a man sitting down at a desk in front of video window tiles with the text NJSBA Webinars.

Webinar: NJSBA 2025 Report: 29 Recommendations to Help Career-Focused Learners

Watch now

View other popular NJSBA multimedia resources.