Expanding Registered Apprenticeship in the United States American Apprenticeship Initiative

This evaluation of the AAI grants was intended to build evidence about the effectiveness of registered apprenticeship for apprentices and employers. The primary data source is a Grantee Survey administered to all grantees approximately four years into their grants when grantees implemented most activities. This report first describes the characteristics of the AAI grantees and their experiences with designing and operating their apprenticeship training programs, including in occupations that do not traditionally use apprenticeship for training. The report then examines how grantees register programs, engage employers and recruit apprentices to participate in their programs. The final three sections of the report focus on the delivery of related technical instruction and on-the-job learning for the AAI grantees’ respective programs; pre-apprenticeship programs offered by AAI grantees; and support services available to AAI apprentices and pre-apprentices.

The researchers identified the following findings:

• AAI grants were awarded to a diverse array of public and private organizations, the majority with no prior experience developing registered apprenticeship programs.
• Grantees successfully registered apprenticeship programs and diversified occupations. As of December 31, 2019, grantees collectively registered 1,943 programs. The most common occupations registered are manufacturing (36%), information technology (21%), and healthcare (19%). Traditional building trades account for only 8% of newly registered occupations.
• AAI-funded programs award many types of credentials. Forty-four percent of apprenticeship completers receive a State certification or license, followed by 38% receiving a non-degree college certificate.
• Grantees successfully recruited apprentices from underrepresented populations. Almost 70% of apprentices registered as of December 31, 2019, were from underrepresented groups, including women, racial and ethnic minorities, and veterans. Grantees made particular progress recruiting women, more than doubling the proportion of new registered women apprentices in the fiscal year 2019.
• The majority of apprentices were incumbent workers. Employers use apprenticeship not only to train new workers but also to train existing workers to become fully competent in advanced skilled occupations.
• The Office of Apprenticeship registered apprenticeship programs more quickly than did State Apprenticeship Agencies.
• Dedicated recruitment staff and financial supports to employers are associated with progress towards apprenticeship targets.
• A greater share of grantees most successful in meeting their apprentice registration targets use Apprenticeship Training Representatives to recruit employers and other sponsors.
• Despite progress registering programs and apprentices, employer recruitment challenges remain. Overcoming employer reluctance to adopt apprenticeship is the key challenge reported by a majority of grantees (61%) to creating and registering apprenticeships.

• Last Updated:
• Created:
• Resource Publication Date: 2021
• Author(s): Gardiner, K., Kuehn, D., Copson, E., Clarkwest, A.
• Funding Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration
• Resource Availability: Publicly available
• Posted by: Wesley Peterson
• Posted in: Workforce System Strategies