The Ontario ombudsman reports that apprenticeship programs in that province have a low completion rate.

read more.

Is it a better guarantee of success if people go to trade school?

Here at tradeschoolworld we focus too much on skilled trades to the detriment of the many other trades and trade schools covered on our site. For shame! as Abe Simpson might say.

Seriously, we’re going to try to move away from our focus on traditional trades and give more attention to the many other trades covered on our site such as:

• Creative Arts Trades
• Beauty Trades
• Hospitality and Tourism Trades
• Criminal Justice and Law Trades

With that in mind, let’s talk about something near and dear to our web publishing hearts here at tsw: web design trades.

Web design seemed to be taking a hit a few years back when all you heard about was companies outsourcing to Asia and Europe. However, in the meantime, the pendulum has swung back this way as companies discovered that they were often getting second and third rate work from second, third – and even first – world countries.

Web design is still a very viable career choice, a rewarding career that offers people the ability to be creative and to see their work enjoyed by the public. If you work for (or own) a web publication with proper marketing and promotion you can expect many people to see your web design work. So it better be good. 

There are a wide variety of web design skills that are still requirements including the following:

• Website layout
• Web technical skill such as php or asp and javascript
• Website usability is still a viable field of training (see this link) that incorporates technical pieces like dev skills and design skills. It also allows you to interact with people including clients on one side and usability testing subjects on the other.

Trade school world lists a number of web design schools from across the United States. Hey, by the way, we are looking at a website redesign. Does anybody know a web designer willing to help us out?

Are you looking at the current “economic turmoil” and wondering how you could be safe? While the current credit crisis threatens jobs, there are still many stories from all over telling of jobs available in the trades or that it is simply showing steady growth in a time where many industries are holding their breath or laying off and tightening up.

The Penta Career Center is an excellent example of proper planning and execution that will hopefully inspire some of its students as they pursue careers in vocations and skilled trades.

Read more

Meanwhile in Alaska, they are singing the praises of women’s contribution to the construction industry.

“In my view, women are natural multi-taskers [so] they are natural project managers. If they like to use tools, they can get in the trades. If not, there’s architects, interior designers – the field is wide open,” says Tamie Taylor, national president of the National Association of Women in Construction.

Read more here.

Feature article on the closing last year of Harrison Career Institute (a trade school with locations in Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey), and the effect on students left with nothing but a pile of debt:
http://diverseeducation.com/artman/publish/article_11008.shtml

SkillsUSA is inviting all its chapters to participate in the celebration of its founding by planning a community service project for the first full week of May. SkillsUSA was founded as The Vocational Industrial Clubs of America, Inc. (VICA) in 1965.

You can view a gallery of last year’s projects at http://www.skillsusa.org/events/service.shtml

According to officials at Vatterott College, trade schools across the USA are seeing a jump in enrollment.

Vatterott College director Robert Andrist said it is important to note that the nation’s jobless rate is rising due in part to jobs going overseas.

“There are just certain jobs that cannot ever be outsourced and most of those are the hands-on type of trade. You’re never going to fly to India to get your hair fixed,” he said.

Buy a raffle ticket and you could win a 2008 Dyna Super Glide in Custom Color, courtesy of Skills USA and the Harley-Davidson Motor Co., Inc.

The bike will be raffled off at the NLSC Awards Ceremony, in Kansas City, Mo. on Friday June 27th.

Sweet!

The Fabricators & Manufacturers Association Foundation announced this week 10 new $500 scholarships for students around the country seeking careers in manufacturing.

The “GO-Brennan” Scholarships are tied to FMA’s sponsorship of 16-year-old Florida stock car driver Brennan Palmiter.

Palmiter, a proficient welder, can be seen in YouTube video inviting high school, trade school and college students to apply for the scholarships.

Applicants must be 18 or older as of May 15 and must be enrolled for fall 2008 in an institution of higher learning — including trade or technical school. They can also have been admitted to any coursework relevant to the manufacturing industry.

To apply, post a video of yourself to the “GO Brennan” site on YouTube by April 4. You can find details about video requirements and other eligibility rules at fma-foundation.org.