Most of today’s well paying jobs require a credential beyond a high school degree. Associate’s degrees and/or certificates are the most accessible and promising route to a job with a living wage and a genuine career path for many. This indicator measures the number of people in the who complete an associate's degree in a given academic year at one of the three community colleges in the region - Greenfield Community College, Holyoke Community College and Springfield Technical Community College.

Between 2015 and 2016, the number of community college graduates in the Pioneer Valley decreased by about 5%. This trend was consistent across all three counties.