With New Apprenticeship-College Links, Craft Training Gets More Credit
As the construction industry struggles to produce more skilled craft workers, apprenticeship programs are seeking new recognition for the high levels of technical proficiency they provide. That recognition is coming in the form of college credit, and it is creating a short path from training program completion to a two-year diploma from allied schools. In some cases, unions are even eliminating the middleman by having apprenticeship programs certified as accredited post-secondary degree granting institutions.
“For a long time our trustees have been discussing the future of apprenticeship, says Mike Metz, administrator of the Finishing Trades Institute (FTI), an arm of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades. “In our opinion, it is to link it with the higher education system.”