Question: Our company has been in constant search for employees over the last two years. We have heard that trade schools may be an option. Could you provide some information about these organizations and suggest ways in which we could recruit their graduates?
Answer: Trade schools, also known as technical schools or vocational schools, can be an excellent resource in providing trained and qualified employees for your company. Often not publicized in comparison to colleges, trade schools present opportunities for PROs to recruit highly skilled and trained personnel in a variety of fields.
What is a trade school?
A trade school is an educational institution designed to train students for a specific job in a specific skilled trade career.
Examples of vocational training and careers are varied and numerous. From the more traditional fields of electrical, plumbing, welding, engine repair, driving, cosmetology and culinary arts to the growing careers in nursing, paralegal, cyber security, and criminal justice. Trained personnel in these fields are invaluable in today’s world. We will focus on the areas of truck driving, truck mechanical repair, administration, and computer science skills later in this column.
What are the advantages of these schools?
Among the many advantages of trade schools are:
- The curriculum is focused on a single career path, and therefore completion of the program is much faster than a traditional college degree. Depending on the specific program and field of study, some certificates can be completed within a year or two years at the most.
- Student loan debt is significantly less than that of the average four-year collegiate program.
- Smaller class sizes and instructors with real-world experience in their specific field provide for greater expertise in the student’s area of study.
- In some instances, classes are offered in the evenings so students can work part-time or full-time during the day.
- Online programs in areas such as business and computer science also allow for work during the day and education in the evening.
- Given the high demand for employees in recent years, trade school graduates have high rates of hiring upon completion of their program.
What programs could be of interest to PROs?
• Truck Driving
Depending on the school, truck driving may be an area of study and part of the curriculum. Over the Road driving is the most common position for new truck drivers but the opportunity for a local driving position in your company is certainly a possibility. Investigate these programs at your local trade schools.
• Truck Mechanic
In-house repair and maintenance of your fleet can save time and money. New graduates in these programs could improve preventive maintenance programs even if your company has established vendors that perform major repairs on your equipment.
• Administrative Professionals
Licensure is a major component in most trade schools and the Certified Administrative Professional is one of the most common for those seeking administrative careers. The major components of this certificate include accounting, payroll, marketing, customer service and billing. Hiring a graduate with a CAP certificate could certainly be beneficial to your company.
• Computer Science
Whether available online or on the trade school campus, most basic programs prepare the graduates with expertise involving websites, system security, databases and office technology. In today’s business environment, having personnel with the latest training in these areas is crucial.
How can your company recruit and become involved with a trade school?
There are more than 1,500 trade schools and vocational programs in the United States and www.findmytradeschool.com includes a database to locate these facilities. Information regarding academic requirements, accreditation, areas of concentsration and general information is available for each school. Find a program and a facility that is of interest in your area and make the contact.
Once you find a program that educates students in areas that would benefit your company, consider establishing an educational partnership with this school. Here are several ideas to consider:
Offer to serve as a guest speaker in classes where future employees could be attending. Whether it would be truck driving or administrative support, students enjoy hearing from those in “the business world” as opposed to those in academia.
Offer internships. Students studying truck maintenance and repair, for example, could work on your fleet and gain experience in this area. Your company would benefit from this work while also building the relationship with these students who might one day become employees.
Attend job fairs. You can showcase your company while also recruiting potential employees with skills specifically needed by your company. Job fair attendees also pass on referrals to other job seekers about your company and your company’s job needs.
Offer competitive benefits. Trade school attendees are seeking immediate positions with career opportunities. Show them your company is seeking to reward long-term employees.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Portable sanitation is an essential, stable and necessary industry ideally suited to the jobs for which trade schools provide training. By establishing a relationship with a trade school, a PRO can become a resource for on-the-job training as well as the beneficiary of excellent job candidates. Often overlooked and misunderstood, trade schools can be a source of finding well-trained, long-term employees for your company.
