CURATED READS FOR GEN Z—AND THEIR Z-CURIOUS COLLEAGUES

first up

With August in full swing, back-to-school days are just around the corner. This year, make sure you avoid that last-minute scramble for college-ruled composition books (that is, if you still use paper). Internet ubiquity has already set Gen Z’s education apart, but there’s a lot more to the picture.   

If you’re a Gen Zer who’s 12 …

You might not get the chance to learn the same way your global peers do. Half of all kids in the Middle East, North Africa, and Pakistan fail to reach a basic level of learning in primary school. And while the pandemic may have helped speed the spread of learning tech, many places are still recovering from disruptions—in Tanzania, only 6 percent of kids listened to radio lessons, and less than 1 percent studied online. 

Who’s 15 … 

Life is tough enough in high school, but students globally are eight months behind where they should be. In the US, high schoolers have become more likely to drop out of school and less likely to go on to postsecondary education. In prepandemic 2020, Gen Zers were expected to become the most well-educated generation ever. Only time will tell if we can pull that off. 

Who’s 20 … 

Maybe you’re finalizing your college major choice. Overall, Gen Zers are increasingly choosing pragmatic fields such as business or healthcare over the humanities, especially as financial woes rise. We’ve also shown we’re more into hands-on learning and want to see what we’ll actually be able to do with our studies. What’s your call?

Who’s 25 …

You might be considering going to graduate school—maybe the life of a professor is for you? But diversity problems still plague higher education: at US universities, there was effectively no progress from 2013 to 2020 in hiring faculty from underrepresented populations. (It’s not any better for undergraduates either—check out the data here.) 

If you’re headed back to school soon, good luck—and feel free to let us know at newideas@mckinsey.com about the biggest stresses (or successes!) on your mind.

VISUALIZE IT

The pandemic disrupted at least some schooling for the majority of Gen Z—and students in some regions are up to a year behind where they should be.

QUOTE US ON IT

“Students from families with higher and better-off socioeconomic backgrounds have typically experienced less learning loss. Those from more challenging socioeconomic backgrounds experienced more. That’s incredibly important, just as we think about our societies and how we educate children.”

—McKinsey senior partner Andrew Goodman, on COVID-19 learning loss

Wait, don’t scroll 

It’s about the finish line. Even as higher-education institutions work toward greater diversity, the students they recruit from underrepresented backgrounds might not get the support needed to graduate. Explore the sobering data here—and let’s hope we can turn the tide.

Rise to the top. Students at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the US have an impressive economic mobility rate, with graduates being 51 percent more likely than graduates of non-HBCUs to move into a higher-income quintile.

Pick up some fun facts for Day 1. Have you heard of what’s likely the most dangerous spatula in the history of mankind? If not, check out our interactive on the 670,000 pieces of space junk zinging around the atmosphere. 

NOT US; STILL GREAT

Is it even worth it? China’s Gen Z, despite being the country’s most educated generation ever, are unemployed at rate of 19.3 percent due to a lack of jobs and low hiring—they may in fact be “overeducated” for the labor market. [Business Standard]

Work, work, work, work, work. Much was written about lazy millennial teens fleeing the workforce, but Gen Zers are rushing right back in: the teen employment rate in the US is rising unexpectedly quickly. [WaPo] 

Raised eyebrows. Gen Zers have less faith in higher-education institutions than their older peers: in a survey, only 41 percent said that they would trust colleges and universities. [HigherEd Dive]

THE BELL DOESN’T DISMISS YOU, I DO (JUST KIDDING, TRY OUR CROSSWORD)

— Edited by Sarah Skinner, Gen Z curation editor, New York