US millennials post ‘abysmal’ scores in tech skills test, lag behind foreign peers

There was this test. And it was daunting. It was like the SAT or ACT -- which many American millennials are no doubt familiar with, as they are on track to be the best educated generation in history -- except this test was not about getting into college. This exam, given in 23 countries, assessed the thinking abilities and workplace skills of adults. It focused on literacy, math and technological problem-solving.

The goal was to figure out how prepared people are to work in a complex, modern society. And US millennials performed horribly. That might even be an understatement, given the extent of the American shortcomings. No matter how you sliced the data -- by class, by race, by education -- young Americans were laggards compared to their international peers. In every subject, US millennials ranked at the bottom or very close to it, according to a new study by testing company ETS.