Apprenticeships are associated with blue-collar trade professions, but more and more tech companies are turning to them for jobs that are difficult to fill because of a lack of skilled candidates.
They are, in effect, creating people with the exact skills they need, on their dime and in-house.
An apprenticeship is considerably different from an internship.
鈥淎n internship is usually a way for a candidate that is in a degreed program to get experience. Whereas apprenticeships typically don鈥檛 have a degree as a barrier to entry or enrollment in a degree program,鈥� Victoria Schillinger, Vice President of HR at Tysons, Virginia-based home and business security tech firm , told 海角社区app.
鈥淎pprenticeships are also structured to be longer, and therefore the degree of mentorship that is happening during the time period of the apprenticeship experience goes deeper,鈥� she said.
Apprenticeships can last several months, or even a year. And they are paid jobs.
Alarm.com recently wrapped up the first state-sponsored apprenticeship program for a tech company in Virginia. It included 10 weeks of technical instruction at Northern Virginia Community College, and nine months of on-the-job training. Most of those in its apprenticeship program were hired for full-time jobs.
Alarm.com was among first grants awarded under the economic development initiative, which covered two-thirds of the company鈥檚 certification costs for its apprentices.
Also unlike internships, apprenticeships don鈥檛 put much, if any weight on a candidate鈥檚 formal education or work experience.
鈥淲hen you鈥檙e looking for an apprentice, you鈥檙e looking for the right person and the right aptitude and not necessarily what is on a resume. You鈥檙e looking for people who have persevered, people that are naturally curious and that can problem-solve,鈥� Schillinger said.
Because there are no formal education requirements, she said companies can draw from a much more socioeconomically diverse pool of candidates.
With more than 50,000 currently unfilled technology-related jobs in Northern Virginia, apprenticeships can also be a completive advantage for companies that are able to build that needed talent in-house.
There is free information about apprenticeship programs, including searches for available programs with apprenticeships such as engineering, software development and cybersecurity, by the U.S. Department of Labor.
