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September 27, 2016 Squeeze lemons before buying them If you pay attention to the news, you probably have heard about the closure earlier this month of ITT Technical Institute, a for-profit college chain with more than 130 campuses in 38 states and some 40,000 students now left out in the cold. The closure...

But not in the trades Being a straight-A student is not nearly as hard as it used to be. A’s are now the most common grade given to college students (more than 42%), and A’s are three times more common than they were in 1960, according to the website GradeInflation.com. Does this mean today’s college...

August 25, 2015 And, without crushing debt! Kiplinger’s is a popular general interest newsletter. A recent article of theirs caught my eye: “10 Best Jobs That Don’t Require a College Degree.” Not surprisingly, plumber was listed among them. Kiplinger’s noted: “New buildings come with plenty...

July 21, 2015 By Nelson D. Schwartz From NYTimes.com NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — With its gleaming classrooms, sports teams and even a pep squad, the Apprentice School that serves the enormous Navy shipyard here bears little resemblance to a traditional vocational education program. And that is exactly the...

Is it really training or just cheap labor?   In choosing an apprenticeship program, you have some basic decisions to make. Do you wish to pursue union employment or nonunion? Are you more intrigued by construction or service work? Most union-run apprenticeship programs are renowned for stressing...

Most formal apprenticeship programs neglect service work.   In my last article I described traditional apprenticeship programs established by contractors, unions and nonunion companies for the construction trades. Some of the plumbers, electricians and HVAC technicians who fix and maintain those...

It combines classroom instruction with hands-on work.   Apprenticeship dates back to the Middle Ages in Europe as a way for master craftsmen to pass on their knowledge and techniques to younger generations. The craftsman would employ one or more young people at minimal wages in exchange for teaching...

Working for free is unheard of in the trades.   You may have thought that the Emancipation Proclamation did away with slave labor in this country, but it persists in many office buildings around the country. That’s where thousands of college students spend their summers or evening hours fetching...

A well-rounded person needs both.   I feel blessed to have graduated (class of 1965) from one of the best public high schools in the country — Lane Technical in Chicago. Then as now, Lane Tech ranked among national leaders in graduation and college admission rates. Lane graduates get accepted...