From Degrees to Skills: The Career Shift Reshaping Bahrain’s Youth

In Bahrain, labour data highlights a widening gap between education and job outcomes. Nearly 60% of registered job seekers in 2024 held a bachelor’s degree or higher, yet many struggled to secure roles aligned with their qualifications. Meanwhile, employers report shortages in job-ready candidates across digital marketing, software development, design, data analysis, and content creation.

This disconnect is driving interest in faster, targeted training. Coding bootcamps, digital marketing courses, design programmes, AI certifications, and vocational training are increasingly popular. Enrollment in programmes such as General Assembly Bahrain’s part-time courses surged 40% in 2025, offering 3–6 month paths to junior roles with placement rates nearing 80%. Tamkeen has reinforced this trend by subsidising up to 100% of costs for nationals, making skills-first learning more accessible than ever.

Apprenticeships are gaining momentum as well. Initiatives like Zain Bahrain’s 18-month youth empowerment programme blend technical and soft-skills training, targeting around 500 participants annually for roles in telecom and ICT. These models align with employers’ growing preference for practical experience over academic transcripts.

This skills-driven shift is now being encouraged even earlier. Skills Bahrain, an initiative under Tamkeen in collaboration with the Ministry of Education recently concluded the first phase of a national awareness campaign reaching more than 5,000 secondary students across 38 public schools. The programme introduced students to emerging jobs, in-demand skills, and future economic sectors, supported by the Employability Skills Portal, which provides data-driven insights on career pathways, labour trends, and academic options. Similarly, long-running initiatives such as Bahrain Youth City 2030 and ecosystem-building platforms like StartUp Bahrain have exposed youth to entrepreneurship, innovation, and real-world problem-solving, reinforcing the value of early skill exploration. Together, these efforts aim to ensure that future graduates enter the labour market with clearer expectations and capabilities aligned to national priorities.

Bahrain’s ongoing economic diversification, driven by Vision 2030 and focused on innovation, sustainability, and digital transformation, requires a workforce able to adapt quickly. Gen Z’s preference for skills-first learning may be an advantage, preparing them for fields that did not exist a decade ago.

Ultimately, young Bahrainis are not rejecting education; they are redefining it. They want learning that is flexible, practical, and aligned with real opportunities. And as employers increasingly prioritise capability over credentials, skills may soon become the kingdom’s most valuable currency.