High school students often have a hard time choosing between college and trade school on their graduation year. There are many opportunities for colleges, but students are now realizing that there’s also many opportunities outside colleges in trades. Choosing between the two will come down to what fits someone best.
Trade schools often leave out things like general education and liberal arts classes. They focus on specific skills for a career such as, electricians, plumbers, HVAC technicians, welders, and carpenters. These five trades are some of the more popular ones, but they each offer good opportunities to earn.
Something that gives trade schools an advantage over college is that you get paid while you learn and on top of that you don’t pay tuition. For most trades with unions, you start at the bottom of the ladder, and as you gain seniority, you earn more. Trade schools are usually hands on work which is not for everyone but for someone who can handle it.
Yosgart Asidro, a student at PHS, has chosen to go into trades rather than going to college.
“I want to do trades because overall it just seems more simple rather than college and it also makes me more motivated because I know that I’m getting paid for my work,” he said.
On the other hand, college is higher education after high school where you study a specific field and earn a degree. This leaves you with open doors to higher-level careers as well as more career options.
The problem with college is that it can be expensive and it takes years before you can start working full-time. According to Education Data, “the average cost of college in the United States is $38,270 per student per year, including books, supplies, and daily living expenses.” There are ways to lower these costs through FASFA, scholarships, community colleges, and more.
Devin Hart, a student at PHS is planning to go to college.
“Well I can get a degree to make money and also just so that I can get ahead in life,” he said. “I would also choose college because they just have more resources than trade schools. With trade schools you’re learning a very specific thing but with colleges its more flexible because you can even change what you want to major in. Not only that, I can pretty much decide what types of classes I want to take, whether I want to do online, in-person, or both.”
The decision to either do college or go into a trade school ultimately depends on the person. Some people would rather get into college to learn more, or get into a career that isn’t as physically demanding. While on the other hand, other people may go to trade school because they don’t want to deal with the student loans and like to do hands on work. These aren’t the only reasons as to why someone might make their decision, but they certainly play a role.
