Our S has just told us he will not pursue a traditional 4 year college path, but would prefer to find a way to work with his hands. My H and I support his decision, and have seen his interest and desire play out in all his tools and projects in our home.
I am looking for information on types of jobs that would be a good fit for him, and for information on how to research/compare our local technical schools. We live in Georgia, and our S will qualify for the highest level of Free Tuition at our state’s public technical colleges. My desire is to steer him into a program that offers an Associate’s Degree, but the real goal is to get him the education he needs to get the type of job he desires.
I believe our job as parents is to give our S exposure to a lot of different kinds of hands on work by introducing him to workers in those fields. Maybe job shadowing or an internship, although getting onto some job sites before he is 18 might be an issue. I can name plumber, welder, carpenter and then I draw a blank. And I imagine that technology is now playing a bigger part in trade work, and assume there are jobs now that did not exist in my childhood.
So I am asking Parents here for help. Educate me about a Trade Job you are familiar with, either in your own work or through a relative or friend. My S is a creative thinker, loves to tinker, can take something from the trash on side of the road and repurpose it, is a problem solver, and has learned some CAD programs in working with his 3D printer. I personally think he would make a great inventor, but don’t know how he can support himself in that kind of work. S is very driven to find work that is meaningful, but he is also practical and desires to earn his own way in the world. He loves to be outdoors, would not do well in an office cubicle. He refreshes his mind/body/soul with some outdoor time each day as he takes frequent breaks from his academics. I do wonder about boredom setting in, though, if he had a production line job and did the same thing day after day. I think a job that had some variety would be more interesting for him.
He has a solid background and interest in computers, and was headed for a probable career in computers. A concussion with long-term side effects has changed him completely, and he now wants to pursue this new direction. We want to help him as much as we helped our older D with her college search. Are there any forums out there for me to check out? Magazines/trade publications/local unions/websites??
First of all, I applaud your sons decision and your support! I own a plumbing and heating company and the lack of kids coming into the trades makes me (and all of my peers) very afraid!
- In my state (WI) you have the option of becoming an apprentice and then your employer pays your tuition and for the time you spend in school (for plumbers here that is 1 full day every other week for 4 years).
- For heating and A/C, there are trade schools but also specialty schools that can get you trained in as few as three weeks. In Georgia there will always be a need for AC!
- Electricians are in very short supply and would also have an apprenticeship program.
- Welders travel quiet a bit and get paid well, although burn out can be high.
- Cabinet makers are very hands on and it takes a skill to make them beautiful!
- Same with tile work - some union guys travel extensively to do commercial work but doing residential can be very creative and requires good attention to detail. Also an apprenticeship opportunity.
My oldest son is getting his Associates degree in Automotive Engineering (so he’s a trained mechanic) but just applied to Minnesota State at Moorhead for a bachlors program that uses almost all of his Associates degree credits towards a BS in Automotive Management. It’s all online too so he doesn’t have to move. I would believe most technical colleges have alliances with 4 year programs to use their associates degree toward a bachelors in the same area of study. Find a good one though!
Good luck!!!
Building science (home inspectors) also are never the same thing two days in a row. All of the skilled trades lend themselves to different opportunities once you have some experience - think of the counter workers at the wholesale houses we buy our supplies from, design and engineering at the manfuracturers, even answering a technical help line one you have experience. A lot of the HVAC is getting more and more technical and WIFI everything will be standard soon - the next generation will have to hold our hands through the changes!
My S is getting ready to graduate this spring from a technical college with 2 Associate’s Degrees, one as a Diesel Technician and one as a Heavy Equipment Technician (so he knows how to take apart and repair semi-trucks and all that construction equipment). There were some overlapping classes so he could get both degrees in 3 years.
He started at a traditional college as an engineering honors college student, but after one year knew he wanted something more hands on. His tech college is affiliated with our state flagship, which is nice to have on the diploma. They have a very high job placement too. His programs did have English, Math, and other requirements but he got out of all of them with his SAT scores or AP credits from HS. His program required a summer internship after year 1, and helped him find one (they have massive career fairs twice a year). This company hired him back for a second summer and then offered him a full-time job after graduation.
When we were looking at schools, what I found in my research led us away from programs at for-profit schools like the ones that advertise all the time on tv. A school like my son’s (they not only turn out mechanics, but chefs, physician assistants, auto painters and restorers, computer techs, etc and also offer an additional 2 years of study in business for many majors so you can get your BA in management), or classes at a community college, or an apprenticeship as mentioned above are better routes into most of these fields.
As to variety, at least for my son he traveled to different work sites, and every day had a different machine that needed work on a different part. But he had long drives to those sites (paid though!), and his work is very physical. A typical week including driving might be 50-60 hours, and anything over 40 he gets overtime. He was in bed by 10 most nights and up before 6. I don’t know if it is the sort of job you do for 40 years…but luckily he has already mentioned the idea of returning to his school one day to possibly teach classes himself, so there is a back up plan!
Has he considered studying engineering or engineer technician? Not all engineers are stuck in a office.
How about the robotics and automation technician. I suspect this would require some programming skills and definitely mechanical and electrical aptitude.
I had an uncle that did very well as a elevator/escalator technician.
Another idea would be a machinist. Not sure of the job prospects.
Another growing field is clean energy energy. He could look into the consumer side installing and maintaining solar panels or the industrial market of solar plants and wind farms.
It seems like a lot of the ideas posted require basic knowledge to advance knowledge of electricity, electronics and mechanical systems. A good trade school should be able to provide this knowledge. If he wants to design or invent new technical products then a engineering background might be better.
A friend’s son is a welder, graduate of a two-year community college program. He works for a company doing high tech parts for aircraft, specializing in hard to weld metals like titanium. He loves his job, got married and bought a house at 21.
Your son sounds a lot like mine. He’s never met a mechanical or working part that he didn’t want to take apart and fix, not even as a kid. He went into the service, then CC for welding, but he ended up working in construction. That led to work in the field of building testing-different companies specialize in different areas, but some involve chemicals, freezing chambers, mockups of walls or even whole buildings, water spray, and I don’t know what all. Every building is different, every job is different, but the skills are specialized and it pays very well. You have to be willing to work outside, but also know your way around reports and desk work. While S doesn’t have a 4-yer degree, many of his coworkers have been engineers, some with graduate degrees. S just absorbs knowledge like a sponge and gets hired anyway. He’s got all the certifications. Good luck to yours-we need hands-on people. You can’t outsource most of that work.
My brother owns a couple of auto repair shops. He says he could expand even more if he could find people willing to work in the field. If a young person with actual trade school experience walked into his shop looking for work, bro would probably keel over from shock and happiness.
The field of auto mechanics is always changing but it’s changing especially rapidly now. Besides being able to do all the fun, greasy wrench turning stuff, mechanics have to operate sensitive diagnostic equipment; they also have to deal with delicate electronic components inside cars. I’m in the software business and my brother and I used to have nothing in common as far as our work goes. Now we spend hours discussing new technologies, embedded systems, etc.
If your son has an entrepreneurial spirit and might want to own his own business some day, encourage him to take a few business courses along with his trade-related classes. Knowing how to handle basic invoicing and account management is always a good thing.
Just wanted to share the news with this thread that my oldest is set to graduate with his associates in automotive technology (a mechanic) and has two very good job offers pending with national companies offering enviable benefits. In addition to his technical skills,I will say he has above average people skills that got him his opportunities. I’m so proud of him!
Thanks for sharing. Glad to hear of good job with great benefits. Rare to get a good benefits package these days. What will job entail? Corporate office, production line, retail location??
Entry level doing field service for a manufacturing company - he will provide support for two states, doing inventory and logistics for their sales reps from what it sounds like. Very good starting salary, mileage and per diem, The person who recommended him and both interviewers let him know this is entry level and to expect to begin rising within the company after a year.
That’s terrific. Good for your son. Good for you!
Nice way to support him and his decisions.
I also want to share with the group this great opportunity for a school for the trades for free tuition. In fact, I think the school pays the students an hourly wage, as it’s an “apprentice” program.
http://www.as.edu/
“Not all engineers are stuck in a office.” - Very true. But every engineer does have to survive 4 years of intense academics. That is not everybody’s cup of tea (though it was mine).
DH and my father both work/ed in major research engineering firms – and both places had a machine shop where parts are fabricated from scratch, to specifics developed for a single task. No assembly line. My younger brother directs a heavy equipment company that can never find enough skilled metalworkers, etc.
Best friends’ son works as a carpenter, free lance, on assignment for contractors who need cabinetry. Is busy all the time. Started as a carpenter’s assistant, never had formal training.
Here in PA, there’s a division of PSU called Penn Tech that teaches trades, and there’s probably similar things in the south. The Campbell School in Brasstown NC might know of some ideas. Or he could take classes there (they teach traditional crafts like pottery, caning, etc but also woodturning and blacksmithing, and their staff seem to know everyone)
Is he a HS senior? Is he interested in fabricating raw materials? Or repurposing and recycling? Does he use a computer to research or for instructions about what he wants to do?
I have a friend who has a very successful cabinet making business. When he graduated from high school, he knew that he didn’t want to pursue anything academic. After working in construction for a few years, he decided that he wanted to pursue fine woodworking. He went to the North Bennett Street School. He also worked for a cabinet maker before going out on his own.
http://www.nbss.edu
Tons of $$, security, and freedom down that road. PLC techs (electricians with a little coding experience) are in huge demand in DFW.
Routinely make 70k most 80-100k with overtime.
Plumbers, AC, welder always will have work and is not a career that AI and robotics will be replacing like many white college jobs.
In North Carolina Siemens is trying to develop a German apprecnticeship model with Central Piedmont CC
https://blog.dol.gov/2015/05/19/siemens-an-apprenticeshipusa-leader-in-stem-fields/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=siemens-an-apprenticeshipusa-leader-in-stem-fields
“…For example, a few years ago when Siemens built a gas turbine factory in Charlotte, North Carolina, we gave applicants a test to evaluate their basic skills in math, reading, and applied technology. Only about 1/3 of the applicants met the minimum qualifications that we were seeking. So to develop a trained labor force to operate this new plant, we worked with Central Piedmont Community College to develop a mechatronics apprenticeship program. Students participate in a 3 ½ year program in which they get paid while going to work part time and going to school part time. …”
http://www.cpcc.edu/et/academic-programs/mechatronics-engineering-technology-1
Overview
The Mechatronics Engineering Technology curriculum prepares individuals for jobs requiring electrical, mechanical, and computer skills necessary to work on complex systems found in manufacturing environments.
You can check out if any of the colleges in Georgia have this kind of industry connections.
Thank you for your thoughtful responses. I am also eager for more stories and resources as others stumble across this thread.
I am intrigued by the Campbell Folk School in NC. And would appreciate hearing about any other places like this one. We would only consider schools that are driving distance from Georgia.