Explore apprenticeships and on-the-job training opportunities in high-demand fields
During National Apprenticeship Week (NAW) from April 26 – May 2, VA is highlighting apprenticeships and other training and employment pathways that help Veterans prepare for careers in skilled trades, manufacturing, defense industrial base and maritime fields. Apprenticeships are a key part of helping Veterans move into high-demand fields that offer a direct path into the workforce.
Through NAW, VA and the Department of Labor (DOL) build awareness of apprenticeship programs with the goal of enrolling 1 million apprentices. DOL coordinates NAW to promote Registered Apprenticeships, in accordance with the National Apprenticeship Act.
Registered Apprenticeships combine paid employment, hands-on training, related instruction and a recognized credential. For Veterans, that can mean building new skills while earning a paycheck instead of choosing between work and training. This model is especially relevant in fields such as skilled trades, manufacturing, defense-related industry and maritime work, where employers need skilled workers—like Veterans who often bring experience that translates to the job.
Pathways for Veterans
Throughout National Apprenticeship Week, you’ll see emails, social media posts on our department channels and highlights on our webpages. VA will collect data on how well the content performs this week and use it to create new outreach opportunities throughout the year to raise awareness of apprenticeships.
We’re also focused on making those pathways easier to understand, easier to access and more closely connected to real workforce needs. For Veterans, the issue is not just whether opportunity exists. It’s whether the path forward is clear.
Some Veterans may want to explore apprenticeship or on-the-job training opportunities that can be supported through VA education benefits. Others may want to learn whether VA’s Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) program can help them prepare for training, employment or a new career goal.
VA continues to build on these existing resources to help Veterans connect to real pathways into work, not just general information about them.
How do I know an apprenticeship is right for me?
The first step is often the hardest, but the choice is yours—and you have plenty of them! Apprenticeships are just one option.
On-the-job training and other employment pathways may also help, depending on your goals, experience and benefits. For those interested in fields like construction, manufacturing, industrial work or maritime careers, consider giving these pathways a closer look.
Where else can I get help?
Community partners, employers, workforce organizations, training providers and Veteran-serving groups can help by making these opportunities easier to find, easier to understand and easier to access. Stronger coordination between these groups can help connect Veterans to real jobs, practical training options and clearer next steps.
That’s why, over the next few weeks and months, VBA will hold stakeholder roundtable events, bringing together government, employers and partner organizations to help expand outreach and opportunity in these fields. VBA will also share information kits with Veterans, their support network, employers and others to connect Veterans to the pathways that deliver high-demand careers. Veterans can expect to start seeing these in their emails starting this week.
Where do I start?
National Apprenticeship Week highlights awareness of a pressing need, but the actionable goal of connecting Veterans to rewarding careers goes beyond a single week. Veterans already possess valuable experience; now it’s time to connect that experience to practical next steps in fields that need skilled workers now.
Veterans interested in taking the next step can review the following links and read about actual apprenticeships, on-the-job training and other career pathways that align with their goals:
- https://www.va.gov/education/about-gi-bill-benefits/how-to-use-benefits/on-the-job-training-apprenticeships/
- https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/eta/eta20260128-0
- https://www.dol.gov/agencies/vets/apprenticeship
- https://www.va.gov/careers-employment
- https://www.apprenticeship.gov/
- https://www.pathtopro.com/
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Can my Grandson take advantage of this Program?
RV
Not interested, or interesting. ?
Interested in maritime
Kenneth Smith
Executive Director, Education Service is promoting lies. With all the “Downsizing” going on in the military Republicans are transferring the debt from the military institution to organizations that Republicans will undoubtedly claim as economic growth.
2 of the links above do not work.
There also needs to be a robust placement hiring or internships available, and working with industry, or Federal jobseekers. Many Vets have security clearances and that too should be a benefit. Putting notices on USA Jobs doesn’t always cut it, there needs to be an office which acts as an ombudsman for the Vets. Additionally, government will have to crack down on the fake school/schemes, which has been done in the degreed programs. We can’t have “Billy Bob’s Screen Door and Quantum Mechanics Fixin’ Academy “.
This article mentions VR&E. Someone at the top needs to look into that here in Arizona. They are wildly out of sorts, never call anyone back, and when you call them it just goes straight to an inbox that’s full and unable to leave a message. Essentially it doesn’t exist at all in Arizona.
I need to study Desin and Art for my MFA.
I belief thati’M to old for a job, I just turned 83 and my son told me thatI I Isuffer from Craft
CAN’T REMEMBER A FUCKING THING, SO, THATS WHERE I’M AT
I appreciate the focus on apprenticeships as a way to gain hands-on experience while getting paid. It seems like a great opportunity to bridge the gap between training and employment.
I’m struggling with connecting veterans to real pathways and the importance of community partnerships, but it feels overwhelming. The idea of enrolling 1 million apprentices sounds ambitious, I wonder how practical that is for individual veterans?
It’s encouraging to see high-demand fields like manufacturing and maritime work, but I’m confused about the specific steps veterans should take to access these opportunities. The mention of various training options and resources is helpful, but I wish there was a clearer roadmap to navigate these pathways.
What is the best first step for veterans looking to take advantage of these programs?
Your focus on “real pathways” is exactly where VA can help lighten the load. It’s understandable to feel overwhelmed—there are a lot of programs, partners, and options, and navigating them alone can feel like too much. VA is here to walk with them, step by step.
One resource I want to highlight is VA’s Personalized Career Planning and Guidance (Chapter 36). You can call 1-800-827-1000 to discuss or apply online at VA.gov to get started on a personalized plan. For more information, see https://benefits.va.gov/TRANSITION/PCPG.asp.
Wish they’d pushed this harder when I was getting out back in ’08. Spent two years trying to force a square peg into a round hole with a degree I didn’t really want. Ended up doing electrical work anyway through a buddy’s referral. Would’ve saved a ton of time and GI Bill months if I’d known the apprenticeship route was an option from the start.