North America is building rare earth plants faster than it is building rare earth engineers

The United States is rapidly constructing rare earth processing plants, but the shortage of skilled engineers remains a critical issue. On August 7, US President Donald Trump hosted mining executives and representatives from 14 accredited US mining schools for a workforce event. This gathering came after more than $180 million in federal funding for mining education, part of a $2 billion package presented by the White House, which Bloomberg estimates at $3 billion.

The largest share of this funding is a new Department of Energy program, PROSPECT (Providing Opportunities for Specialized Education in Critical Technologies), which could provide up to $100 million for doubling the number of graduates with mining, minerals, and supply chain credentials within two years. The Department of Defense has allocated an additional $81.3 million for three schools, including the Colorado School of Mines ($32.7 million), South Dakota Mines ($25 million), and Johns Hopkins ($23.6 million) for a recycling hub.

However, the funding is contingent upon the availability of appropriated funds, as Congress has yet to pass any FY2027 spending bill by December 11. The Department of Defense awards are also still proposed. A $16 million PROSPECT Planning Prize, launched on September 14, offers up to $1 million per school for plans to increase credential output within two years.

Despite the significant investment in rare earths and magnets, the workforce portion of the equation is receiving less than 2% of the funding. Only 14 US universities offer accredited mining engineering degrees, with enrollment dropping from nearly 1,500 in 2015 to fewer than 600 in 2023. The lack of federal funding for workforce development is hindering progress, as Congress has not passed any equivalent workforce section in the Senate, leaving the issue unresolved.