America is a country of forward-thinking innovation. In our rich history, we’ve revolutionized vehicle production, walked on the moon, and produced successful entrepreneurs like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. However, despite this progress, we still have a long way to go, especially in education.

A National Adult Literacy Survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Education in 2003 revealed that one in five Americans lacks skills beyond the fourth-grade level. That’s a hard pill to swallow, especially when you stop and think about how the current job market is becoming increasingly global and pits our citizens against job seekers worldwide.

This reality means that there are still more eager candidates than available jobs, and positions that once required less education and experience are being pursued by overqualified individuals. In some cases, people with some to no high school experience compete with college graduates. While this is clearly an uneven playing field, not all hope is lost for the less-experienced, lower-performing candidates.

There are still many ways they can attractively market themselves to prospective employers. The key is for them to find a way to illustrate strengths that require no education, like drive, work ethic, and willingness to learn and improve. They might not have academic accolades comparable to their competitors, but that doesn’t mean they lack ambition. Many people who perform at a lower level than their peers are merely there because of circumstances such as financial standing and upbringing.

Luckily, there are several ways they can illustrate their determination. For starters, they can enroll in one of the many free, open courses available on the web as this alone will show a natural curiosity and desire to learn—not to mention it will help improve comprehension and reading ability. Another option is to present their potential employer with a plan for the future and how they intend to make it happen. Regardless of circumstance or adversity, this will display a candidate’s motivation to improve. Any way job seekers can convey their perseverance and adaptability will help set themselves apart from the competition, as those are qualities every company desires.

While there is no one way to succeed in today’s economy, illiteracy is definitely not helping anyone. It is a national problem that needs to be addressed to keep our citizens competitive and successful.

Thanks to (@OCC_com).