A couple of weeks ago, on Jan. 30, President Donald Trump gave the State of the Union Address. In this annual speech, he briefly mentioned opening new vocational schools to help workers better learn their particular craft. While these vocational schools might be more common in other countries, they are not nearly as well-known here in the U.S.

So, in case you were wondering, a vocational school (or a trade school) is an educational institution that is designed to teach the skills necessary for a specific job. They generally do not involve many of the general education courses, meaning that they often do not include the facts and figures outside of the information that relates to the student’s vocation of choice. They differ from traditional colleges and universities in the sense that they have remarkably small class sizes and a significantly smaller amount of time spent in the classroom because of their extremely specific curriculums. In addition, attending a trade school is often cheaper in the long run compared to going to a college.

Vocational schools offer job-specific programs in order to help students dive directly from school to their occupation of choice. They tend to take a more hands-on approach, teaching students the more practical skills and knowledge that potential employers look for. In a vocational school, one can learn the trades of plumbing, construction, food service, manufacturing, transportation, and many other jobs that are vital to society. Not to mention, these schools are adaptable to a degree, which allows them to tailor the curriculum to that particular student body. These more career-oriented institutions allow students to opt out of taking academic classes that will not actually help them get a job in the future, something that is not an element in regular colleges. Vocational schools in California include Platt College, Los Angeles Trade Technical College, American Career College, and many more.

Furthermore, a positive effect of trade schools on the national workforce is that those who choose to attend them will be more specifically suited to whichever trade they selected. This could make skilled workers significantly more productive than they would have been otherwise. However, this could potentially suggest that workers will not be as well-rounded as they would be if they had gone to a traditional college and taken all of the general education courses that are required there.

In the end, the choice between traditional colleges and vocational schools really depends on what will work better for you and your choice of careers. However, with the goals of the president in mind, these institutions may become more common, so keep an eye out for them!

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