Students in elementary, junior high and high schools will be reaping the benefits of a new program that will help them secure paid internships as apprentices.
By the end of 2023 the Government of Alberta will fork out more than $6 million per year in their Careers: The Next Generation program. The program will provide 6,000 students with paid internships and skilled trades and technology learning opportunities. The focus is for students to gain more knowledge of the valuable hands-on skilled trades.
Minister of Education, Adriana LaGrange expressed the importance for students to have the opportunities to explore their career choices beyond high school. By providing them hands-on learning programs in areas such as technology and trades their future employability will improve. LaGrange said industry stakeholders and school boards have told her how valuable the registered apprenticeship program and career and technology studies are as an important first step to engage students, improve high school completion rates and build a qualified and educated workforce.
In 2018, more than 13,700 new apprentices registered and were learning at more than 10,100 employer sites around Alberta. Since 1997, the career program has grown from 57 employers to 816 employers in 2018.
Students in 550 high schools and 450 elementary and junior high schools will have access to apprenticeship learning with internships being available to older students. The program also targets young women and Indigenous youth.
With the suggested funding the number of schools involved with the program will jump from 494 to 1,000. Premier Jason Kenney believes this program is a beneficial one.
"Our Skills For Jobs plan is all about preparing young Albertans for great careers, and ensuring our future prosperity. We believe that a trade certificate has every bit as much value and merit as a university degree, and that apprenticeship learning deserves as much support as classroom programs. Careers: The Next Generation is a fantastic way of getting more young Albertans into trade apprenticeships."
Over the next few years, Alberta Labour has predicted that mechanics, industrial mechanics, millwrights, construction and oil and gas will be the highest demand apprenticeships and skilled trades careers.
