Community Colleges Trade Schools
Trade programs are often more affordable than a traditional four-year degree, students note, and, for many, skilled trades offer a more obvious path to a job.EDITOR’S NOTE: This story is part of Saving the College Dream, a collaboration between AL.com, The Associated Press, The Christian Science Monitor, The Dallas Morning News, The Hechinger Report, The Post and Courier in Charleston, South Carolina, and The Seattle Times, with support from the Solutions Journalism Network.
Even so, Jones’s pursuit of a degree at TCAT Nashville would perhaps be a surprise to his high school self. “I didn’t necessarily know what I wanted to do,” said Jones, now 26. “My biggest fear was to go to college, put in all that time and effort and then not use my degree.” Training in auto collision repair made sense for him, he said, because he could earn a credential while doing what he enjoyed, and without spending much time in the traditional classroom. Now 19, Nivyayo looks forward to the anticipated payoff when he gets a job in an auto shop. He can expect to make roughly $40,000 to $60,000 a year, depending on the shop, his instructor said.
Brayden Johnson, 20, who is in his fifth trimester studying industrial maintenance automation, has had the chance to work as an electrical maintenance technician in a local factory that makes tubes for toothpaste. He’s working the night shift, which comes with a slight pay bump, and is earning about $26 per hour.At trade schools like TCAT Nashville, students are drawn to the hands-on design of the courses, Garrett said.