Tearing the Paper Ceiling: Why CareerCircle Champions STARs
The skills you have matter more than where you got them. This simple truth drives CareerCircle's commitment to the STARs movement—a growing coalition of organizations working to transform how America thinks about talent and opportunity.
STARs, or workers Skilled Through Alternative Routes, are a group of over 70+ million Americans who have developed valuable capabilities through pathways other than a traditional bachelor’s degree. These workers—including veterans, individuals with disabilities, and graduates of workforce programs—possess the skills employers desperately need but face an invisible barrier at every turn: the paper ceiling.
As a proud member of the Tear the Paper Ceiling Coalition, we are committed to working alongside more than 80 other leading organizations to remove barriers that block STARs from achieving higher wage work, and to support the national awareness campaign led by Opportunity@Work and the Ad Council. CareerCircle connects over 200,000 candidates with employers ready to prioritize skills over credentials. Our partnership with the Tear the Paper Ceiling campaign represents more than just advocacy for STARs—it's a fundamental shift in how we identify, value, and connect talent in today's economy.
The paper ceiling affects half of America's workforce
STARs aren't a small segment of the labor market—they represent over 50% of all U.S. workers, a talent pool larger than the populations of California and Texas combined. Despite their skills and experience gained through military service, community colleges, certificate programs, apprenticeships, or on-the-job training, these workers face systematic exclusion from opportunities.
The paper ceiling manifests in multiple ways: 62% of employers require college degrees even for entry-level positions, while automated screening systems filter out qualified candidates before human eyes ever see their applications. Between 2000 and 2020, STARs lost access to 7.4 million middle- and high-wage jobs, even as employers report persistent talent shortages. The wage gap between STARs and degree holders has doubled over the past 40 years, with STARs now earning less on average than they did in 1976 when adjusted for inflation.
Research from Opportunity@Work reveals that 30 million STARs have the skills to earn at least 70% more than their current wages, yet for many, unnecessary bachelor’s degree requirements block their advancement. This represents not just individual tragedy but massive economic inefficiency—talent wasted while positions go unfilled.
CareerCircle's partnership amplifies proven talent pathways
Through our collaboration with Opportunity@Work and participation in the Tear the Paper Ceiling campaign, CareerCircle advances a skills-first approach that benefits both workers and employers.
The campaign's core message—"if you can do the job, you should get the job"—aligns perfectly with CareerCircle's mission of connecting skilled talent with opportunities. Our platform already demonstrates that skills-based matching works: veterans transitioning their military expertise to civilian roles, individuals with disabilities bringing unique problem-solving perspectives, and workforce program graduates applying newly acquired capabilities all represent STARs’ talent in action.
By joining the Coalition, CareerCircle stands alongside companies like Accenture, IBM, Google, and Microsoft in publicly committing to remove unnecessary degree requirements and implement skills-first hiring practices within our own company. The Coalition has already driven measurable change: 60% of coalition partners' job postings are now open to STARs, up from 47% just one year ago.
Skills-based hiring delivers exceptional business results
Research consistently shows that skills-based hiring delivers superior outcomes across every key metric employers care about.
Companies implementing skills-based practices report 89% better employee retention rates compared to traditional credential-based hiring. This improved retention stems from better job-fit matching—when you hire based on actual capabilities, employees perform better and stay longer. Organizations also see a 74-78% reduction in cost-to-hire and an 82% decrease in time-to-hire by expanding their talent pools and using more effective screening methods.
Quality improvements prove equally compelling. Skills-based hiring is five times more predictive of job performance than education level and twice as predictive as experience alone. Companies report a 90% reduction in mis-hires when they assess candidates based on demonstrated abilities rather than degrees. For a typical $60,000 salary position, reducing mis-hires can save between $7,800 and $22,500 per role.
Implementation starts with simple but powerful changes
Organizations ready to hire STARs can begin with straightforward steps that yield immediate results.
First, review job postings to identify and remove unnecessary degree requirements. Research shows that the skills required for many positions overlap significantly across wage levels—customer service capabilities that excel in entry-level roles often translate directly to account management positions, yet arbitrary credentialism blocks this natural progression.
Second, implement skills-based assessments in your screening process. Rather than filtering resumes by education credentials, evaluate candidates through work samples, skills tests, or structured interviews that reveal actual capabilities. CareerCircle's platform facilitates this approach by connecting employers with certified candidates from trusted community partners.
Third, develop clear skills-based career pathways within your organization. When STARs see opportunities for advancement based on performance rather than credentials, retention improves and word-of-mouth attracts more qualified talent.
Finally, track and celebrate your STARs hiring success. Organizations that measure outcomes consistently find that STARs workers match or exceed the performance of degree-holding peers while bringing diverse perspectives that drive innovation. Share these success stories internally and externally to shift cultural attitudes about talent and capability.
The movement gains momentum through collective action
Thirty states have enacted executive orders or legislation reducing degree requirements for public sector jobs, recognizing that government should model inclusive hiring practices. Major employers report transformative results: STARs now represent 20% of IBM's workforce, while Accenture fills 20% of entry-level positions through apprenticeships that offer an onramp for STARs.
CareerCircle's role in this movement extends beyond connecting individual skilled candidates with opportunities. By demonstrating that inclusive talent strategies work at scale, we help shift the broader narrative about workforce development and economic mobility. Every successful placement proves that talent exists everywhere—in veteran communities, among individuals with disabilities, within workforce development programs, and throughout the community of millions of STARs ready to contribute their skills.
As baby boomers retire and technological change accelerates, employers cannot afford to overlook this section of the workforce. The organizations that embrace skills-first hiring today gain competitive advantage through access to motivated, capable talent that others miss.
STAR talent, Excellent results
The paper ceiling represents one of the most solvable inefficiencies in our economy—qualified talent blocked from opportunities they could excel in by outdated credentialism. Through our partnership with Opportunity@Work and commitment to the Tear the Paper Ceiling campaign, CareerCircle works daily to connect STARs with employers ready to prioritize capabilities over credentials.
The data proves what we see in practice: when you evaluate talent based on skills rather than degrees, everyone wins. Employers access broader talent pools, reduce costs, and improve retention. Workers gain opportunities for economic mobility and career growth.
For employers ready to tap into the STARs talent pool, CareerCircle provides the platform, partnerships, and proven pathways to success. Our network of over 200,000 candidates from community partners represents skilled workers ready to contribute from day one. By tearing the paper ceiling together, we build a labor market where skills matter more —and where everyone who can do the job gets the chance to prove it.
