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October 6, 2007
The best jobs for students prepping for the work force aren’t necessarily in law or medicine. The best jobs also are not necessarily in software programming either.
No, the hot jobs now for the young and career-minded may very well be in technical, trade and skilled service occupations — such as welders, auto technicians, heavy equipment operators and nurses.
“There’s never been a better time to be a young person with job-specific technical skills,” said Eric Gearhart, director of business and industry partnerships with SkillsUSA.
That’s the message the Virginia-based organization wants to send to high school and college students, their parents, teachers and school guidance counselors, too. It’s also part of the challenge facing SkillsUSA, one of the nation’s largest organizations devoted to preparing high school and college students with career and technical education job skills.
Formerly known as the Vocational Industrial Clubs of America, or VICA, SkillsUSA serves more than 270,000 high school and college-age vocational-minded students. That’s up about 20,000 members from a decade ago.
Each June, thousands of members descend on Kansas City to compete in the organization’s national leadership and skills competition, which draws scores of corporate recruiters. I’ve watched the competition with awe as students demonstrate their skills with robotics and other high-tech applications.
Recently, SkillsUSA executives were in Kansas City and talked to me about the challenges facing the organization.
Predictably, one of the biggest hurdles is dealing with many parents’ and students’ antiquated perception of career and technical education as being blue collar or low wage.
“There is still an image issue,” said Timothy Lawrence, executive director of SkillsUSA.
But the notion that college is the best way for students to punch their ticket to high-paying jobs is increasingly being questioned as tuition bills rise, and the job market tightens for some students who aren’t in graduate school-degree programs.
At the same time, there are shortages of electricians, welders, pipeline technicians, nurses and other occupations, and employers are paying up to fill those positions, SkillsUSA executives said.
“The challenge is to educate the public, particularly parents, about the possibilities that exist for high-skilled workers,” Lawrence said.
For many students interested in vocational and technical programs, it still makes sense to go to college and pursue undergraduate or graduate degrees as a way to round out their street smarts with book knowledge. And, according to U.S. Department of Education statistics cited by Lawrence, about 90 percent of future jobs will require some type of post-secondary education and training beyond high school.
A selling point for many trade and service occupations, Gearhart said, is that “these are skills that can’t be outsourced. The work is happening here, not in China.”
SkillsUSA is concentrating on encouraging teachers and school districts to add practical workplace applications to the core curriculum. The organization is also building partnerships with trade organizations and businesses to mentor students and develop special training and apprenticeship programs.
David Marshall typifies the new breed of SkillsUSA student. The 16-year-old has been learning about fiber optics, computer networking and webmaster skills at Herndon Career Center in Raytown. He also has launched R.O.C.K. Radio, an online Christian radio station ( www.rockradiolive.com).
He is so happy with his education that he hopes to zero in on a high-tech career path that could land him at a company such as Walt Disney Co.
“It excites me,” Marshall said. “My technical education makes me very employable throughout the world.”
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