Apprenticeships combine on-the-job training and related instruction with the goal of gaining the skills required for an occupation, craft or trade. Apprenticeships offer a pathway to higher levels of employment and wages for employees with and without disabilities, and are beneficial to both employee and employer.
Expanding Apprenticeships Under WIOA
This video features four practitioners who discuss the opportunities for expanding apprenticeships under WIOA. The participants document that WIOA enables them to match pre-approved apprenticeship curricula with work-based learning, thereby creating an “earn and learn” model. They compare apprenticeship to the “HOV lane,” enabling them to put all the pieces together to meet the needs of both employers and jobseekers. Voices of Experience on Advancing Apprenticeship as a Workforce Solution (video)
Developing High-Quality Programs and Policies
This report outlines principles, framing, analysis, and recommendations to guide federal, state, and local decision-makers and partners in developing equitable and high-quality pre-apprenticeship programs and policy. Principles for a High-Quality Pre-Apprenticeship
Step-by-Step Apprenticeship Implementation Guide
Key steps for vocational rehabilitation agencies to consider when developing paid work experience programs. State VR agencies can participate in pre-apprenticeship and registered apprenticeship programs in a number of ways, such as recruiting VR customers, supporting the costs of training, and providing VR customers with access to critical supportive services. There are already many pre-apprenticeship and registered apprenticeship programs across the country, and state VR agencies are encouraged to explore opportunities to participate in these existing programs. When existing options are limited, state VR agencies can also work
with partners to begin planning programs in specific areas.
The Step-by-Step Apprenticeship Implementation guide outlines key steps for VR programs to consider for participating in pre-apprenticeship and registered apprenticeship programs.
Emerging Lessons for Inclusive Apprenticeship Programs: Managing Through the COVID-19 Crisis and Beyond
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) sponsored the Apprenticeship Inclusion Models (AIM) initiative. The initiative focused on building capacity for inclusive apprenticeship programs. It also focused on developing and disseminating resources and tools to make apprenticeship onboarding and recruitment, education and training, and workplace experiences and mentoring more inclusive, specifically for people with disabilities. In particular, the initiative sought to learn how inclusive practices from education, workplace, and work-based learning settings could be applied to apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs (pdf).
More Great Resources on Apprenticeships
- From the U.S. Department of Labor, a video series on how apprenticeship works for jobseekers and employers, Apprenticeship Toolkit created by the Office of Disability Employment Policy, and resources for educators and employers.
- Also from the U.S. Department of Labor, a factsheet showing how Registered Apprenticeship (pdf) is a proven path to in-demand skills.
- National Clearinghouse of Rehabilitation Training Materials (NCRTM) library with lots of great materials on apprenticeships.
- Apprenticeship.gov on Hiring and Retaining Apprentices with Disabilities
- ExploreVR.org with a Step-by-Step Apprenticeship Implementation Guide (pdf), and a Pre-Apprenticeship Toolkit (pdf)
- Office of Disability Employment Policy report on Registered Apprenticeship Programs (pdf) as a way for people with disabilities to access the world of work.