High youth unemployment and weak systems of career preparation are continuing concerns for modern societies. Over the last two decades, youth unemployment has become less of a priority issue in the United States, as policymakers increasingly focus on the quality of education and training. Other members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) are continuing to emphasize the problem of youth joblessness even among workers in their early 20s. This paper reviews the lessons from the experience in the United States and other OECD countries about the diagnosis of these problems and what policies have worked to help young people obtain jobs and enter productive careers.