 Although there is a clear correlation between educational attainment, income, and employment rates (see 2016 US Bureau of Labor Statistics,  Other Internet Resources),  the link between academic achievement as measured on tests and labor market outcomes has been found to be more attenuated (Bowles, Gintis, &amp; Osborne 2001). Recent scholarship has shown that “soft skills” (e.g., personality traits like tenacity; individual’s goals and preferences) may be more predictive of success than cognitive abilities measured by test scores (Heckman &amp; Kautz 2012). Moreover, schooling that is most directly targeted at employment—vocational education—has a history in the US of entrenching race and class-based inequalities (e.g., Oakes 1985). Although the relationship between traditional academic skills and labor market success may be less significant than previously thought, and despite the checkered history of vocational education, formal schooling still has a critical role to play toward equipping individuals for labor market success on several fronts.