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WESSON – Registered Apprenticeship is a proven strategy for helping businesses grow their own skilled workforce through a combination of customized and rigorous on-the-job training and related classroom instruction. Copiah-Lincoln Community College recognizes the week of November 12-18 as National Apprenticeship Week.
Co-Lin is one of four community colleges in Mississippi to receive a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor for the Mississippi Apprenticeship Program (MAP). helps companies, regardless of size, develop a Registered Apprenticeship (RA) program from the initial concept phase to registration and subsequent implementation within the company. Recognizing that RA is business driven, MAP works closely with companies to identify the occupations and skillsets needed on their job site and build out a RA program designed to meet their needs.
Co-Lin’s Registered Apprenticeship (RA) program is a proven workforce and leadership development tool that helps businesses expand their talent pool and improve their bottom line. The College’s extensive knowledge of Registered Apprenticeship allows us to assist your business with top-to-bottom planning, customized implementation, and customized turnkey solutions as you develop an apprenticeship program that meets your unique needs.
The Mississippi Apprenticeship Program (MAP) provides opportunities to learn in-demand skills while earning a good wage. Participants in Registered Apprenticeship (RA) programs receive specialized on-the-job training and can earn nationally recognized credentials that provide the skills needed to compete for top jobs in Mississippi and around the country.
The Registered Apprenticeship system has been utilized to meet the needs of America’s skilled workforce for over 80 years. It is a unique, flexible training system that combines job-related technical instruction with structured on-the-job learning experiences. Registered Apprenticeship is a leader in preparing American workers to compete in a global 21st-century economy because the system keeps pace with advancing technologies and innovations in training and human resource development.
The Registered Apprenticeship system provides the opportunity for workers seeking high-skilled, high-paying jobs and for employers seeking to build a qualified workforce. In this regard, the Registered Apprenticeship system effectively meets the needs of both employers and workers.
Apprentices start working from day one with incremental wage increases as they become more proficient on the job. Apprenticeships range from one to six years, but the majority are four years in length. In 2011, more than 130,000 individuals nationwide became apprentices.
The earn-and-learn training model of apprenticeship provides a unique combination of structured learning with on-the-job training from an assigned mentor. Related instruction, technical training or other certified training is provided by apprenticeship training centers, technical schools, community colleges, and/or institutions employing distance and computer-based learning approaches. The goal is to provide workers with advanced skills that meet the specific needs of employers.
Upon completion of a Registered Apprenticeship program, participants receive an industry-issued, nationally-recognized credential that certifies occupational proficiency, is portable, and can provide a pathway to the middle class. In many cases, these programs provide apprentices with the opportunity to simultaneously obtain secondary and post-secondary degrees. In 2011, over 55,000 participants nationwide graduated from a Registered Apprenticeship program.
What are the Advantages of Registered Apprenticeship?
The Registered Apprenticeship system provides a wide array of benefits.
For apprentices, benefits include:
§ Improved skills and competencies that meet the specific needs of the employer
§ Incremental wage increases as their skills improve
§ On-the-job training and occupation focused education
§ Career advancement
§ Industry issued, nationally recognized credentials
For employers, benefits include:
§ Customized training that results in highly-skilled employees trained to industry/employer specifications
§ Increased productivity and knowledge transfer due to on-the-job learning from an assigned mentor combined with related technical instruction
§ Enhanced retention 87 percent of program completers in 2011 were still employed nine months after completing their apprenticeship
§ Emphasis on safety training that may reduce workers’ compensation costs
§ A stable and predictable pipeline for the development of qualified workers
§ Recognition of the training program
§ A systematic approach to training that ensures that employees are trained and certified to produce at the highest skill levels required for that occupation
§ The ability to conduct a ready assessment of where the employer and employee are in terms of the continuous improvement process
§ A proven training model that allows employers to set the benchmark and the structure that can determine the Return on Investment in training dollars
Anyone interested in the automotive technology program at Co-Lin should call Kenny Goza at 601.643.8322.
