VOCATIONAL SCHOOLS OFFER KEYS TO NEW CAREERS Hi colleagues, attached is a piece I contributed to for the LA Weekly on careers that can be obtained via trade schools, career technical education or community college programs. Below is the full context of what I sent the reporter in case youre interested. Can you please just identify 5 of the most rapidly-growing employment sectors in the U.S., and then for each of your selected 5: Technology a) Gen Y, or the Millennials have entered the workforce and are starting and raising families. This generation was raised using technology since they were young children. They expect and sometimes require technology to help them manage and coordinate their personal and professional lives. This leads to an increased demand for technology incorporation into all facets of their lives. With the advancement of technology also comes efficiency, as entrepreneurs create solutions to everyday personal and professional problems, these solutions are often in the form of some sort of hardware device or software program or app, or both. b) This is a huge sector and some common open positions that do not necessarily require a degree are IT, software developers, mobile app developers, cyber security technicians, sales/marketing c) Many individuals in this industry have bachelor and master degrees. However, vocational training and applied experience can go a long way when companies are in a bind for talent. Many of the start-up tech companies are often hiring young people with entrepreneurial ideas and concepts and more than often the work culture is laid back and informal. People tend to be technical, and analytical. d) Some of the entry-level jobs in this industry can be obtained at trade or vocational schools, which BTW, vocational is no longer the term used to identify these institutions, instead, the new term of Career Technical Education CTE is recommended. CTE schools that offer certificates in IT and mobile app development can help someone obtain an entry-level position in this sector, especially for small and medium size companies. Technical or Information Technology schools can provide the necessary training. Healthcare a) This industry is picking up for two main reasons: 1) baby boomers are aging and requiring health related services 2) Obama Care. As Obama Care covers more Americans each year, the demand for health practitioners and support staff will rise. b) Position s at this level vary immensely, from the highly skilled worker like doctors, to operations workers and support personnel with and without degrees. Some specific entry-level roles that do not require a college degree are home health care aids, medical insurance processors, admin support, IT, customer service, medical assistants, and nurses. c) This sector, like many, has a preference for individuals with college degrees but due to the vast expansion of health services, individuals with applied knowledge and experience and who are capable, can also obtain an array of employment opportunities. This job requires individuals with an eye for detail, regardless what role theyre in, the decisions they make every day can have a significant impact on a persons life, whether they re working directly with clients and patients or filing documents or working on IT related issues related to patient records etc. d) Many health related trade schools can provide the training and certification required to get started in this industry. Some examples are medical assisting, phlebotomy, and radiology, however, some of these roles are hard to obtain due to the saturation of individuals in the workforce who have these certifications. As healthcare services expand, the over saturated talent pipeline will hopefully balance itself out. Schools that offer medical assisting and job specific training like phlebotomy, pharmacy technician, etc are appropriate choices to get a foot in the door as well as administrative courses like accounting, business office technology, medical administration, health science and medical technology Staffing/Recruitment Services a) As the economy gets better and America becomes an increasingly highly skilled workforce, finding the right talent can be challenging. The US is a capitalist country, competition is steep and corporate entities are willing to pay to identify, attract, and recruit the next qualified candidate who will help them sustain or grow their workforce. Staffing agencies are one of the fastest growing franchise opportunities too. People are what make a company great, people create products and people deploy services, thus, recruiting the right people is the key to a successful organization. b) Recruiters, business developers and sales, account managers c) This industry relies on hiring a people person to get the job done. Whether the person is sourcing for talent to screen for a potential job match, or working with potential clients to open a new account, a person in this industry must know how to connect with, understand, and work with people. Theyre in the business of sourcing and selling human resources. d) Any school that can teach basic professional etiquette can go a long way. Knowing how to write professional emails, job descriptions and marketing collateral to attract the right audience is important. Business administration related schools is an appropriate CTE institution for someone in this field as well as marketing, sales, and services. Recruiters often times earn commission and if they can fill the highly skilled highly paid positions, they can earn thousands of dollars per placement. Education a) As America continues to grow as a highly educated workforce and the jobs we fill require current knowledge, the need to continuously engage in professional development opportunities grows. The industry of education crosses all industries from public, private, and CTE schools, to corporate trainers and industry specific educators. b) After school teachers, camp counselors, summer camp teachers, health educators (increase due to Obama Care), tutors, instructors c) This industry tends to hire people who want to genuinely give back and help develop others. The kind of people in this industry tend to have high emotional intelligence and thrive off of helping others learn and succeed. Again, companies organizations prefer a bachelor or master degree, however, so many positions do not require a degree to enter this field. d) Schools that offer training in early childhood education, general counseling, and education are appropriate choices. Retail/Wholesale a) America is a country that promotes and values consumption. We encourage spending and shopping. We always want the next big thing, the latest gadget or device and cant wait to buy next seasons wardrobe. Due to our desire to constantly spend, with an improved economy comes the ability to spend. This increases the consumer confidence level which is a good thing, meaning consumers are confident in their ability to spend and consume-- that translates to a greater need for businesses to produce, i.e. supply and demand. This means that in order for business to keep up with the growing demand, they need to hire more workers to produce and sell goods and services. b) Sales associates, supervisors, managers, purchasers, auditors, product display specialists, customer service specialists c) At the front end you see a lot of youth enter this sector, however, retail is one of the few industries in which someone without a degree can enter and through experience, work their way up high in the company into a highly skilled position with large earnings. The industry tends to hire individuals interested in selling the goods and services the organization produces. This industry requires flexibility, patience and individuals who can work with people. d) Schools that offer courses in hospitality, customer service, sales, service, and industry specific courses i.e. fashion for retail stores that sell clothing, or machinist , construction or maintenance courses for someone working for a store that sells hardware. Security a) Post 9/11, America increased its security forces throughout the country. As the economy improves and real estate use purchased and developed for both residential communities and industrial uses, the demand for security officers to safeguard people, buildings, equipment, and information is on the rise. b) Security Officer, Flex Officer, Guard, Inventory Control Specialists, Events Safety Officers, Parking Attendants, Asset Protection Officers, Surveillance Officers, c) Typically people with a high school diploma who have a guard card are employed in this area. Personalities vary, but individuals who can pay attention to detail is required as well as individuals who can react quickly and who arent afraid to speak up or be confrontational when necessary. d) Any school that provides training in Guard Card certification -- Regards, Daniel Newell San Jose State University (Career Center) Program Manager Workforce & Economic Development [email protected] San Jose State University Career Center (0032) One Washington Square San Jose, CA 95192-0032 careercenter.sjsu.edu *Watch my TV interview on KTSF HERE *Watch my TV interview on ABC HERE Receive qualified candidate referrals for jobs and internships through SJSU Spartan Staffing HERE Post jobs and internships to SpartaJobs, SJSUs no-cost online database HERE __._,_.___
Posted on: Mon, 24 Nov 2014 23:04:20 +0000
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