The Apprentice School.

Thanks for posting, BLD.  You sparked curiosity so I took a look at the coaching staff... HC has been there 43 yrs and the recruiter was actually the HC's high school coach where he had 365 wins and the field named after him.  A few other "rookie" AC's have been there 12 years and 11 years, respectively.   Geez. 

This is an interesting idea on a huge scale. As long as the kids realize they aren't going to college, this is an apprenticeship program. There are not going to be school teachers, bond traders and what not coming out of this program. There will be electricians, riggers, welders, so forth....none of them are bad but it is a long long way from college.

They will graduate with a job waiting for roughly 60k on a 40 but they will most likely work a bunch of OT. Probably be making 75k or so plus bennies within a year of "graduating". It is fine career path as long as you understand what you are buying into. If you look around the website closer you will find they also have applicants for college interns in many white collar fields.

Bottom line this is a private training academy for a private company for the trades - it has nothing to do with college.

Impossible to tell what their acceptance rate is. 4,000 apply, 250 attend, but we don't know how many are accepted and choose not to attend.

Yeah, not a college. An apprenticeship. Many of the "graduates" are upwardly mobile through the shipworks. More "graduates" enter into management than employees off the street.  Not right for everybody, however it is an option for those who may not want to attend a 4 year school.  You come out of this school with no debt and a job. Not a bad deal if you want to be a welder or partake in another trade they offer. And if you choose not to accept a position at Huntington Ingalls, you owe them nothing. Plus they are paying you while in school, just like any other apprenticeship. 

If you do not undertand that it is not a college you will learn that quickly as you are a paid employee on your first day. Pulling in $17 plus an hour. 

2019Dad posted:

Impossible to tell what their acceptance rate is. 4,000 apply, 250 attend, but we don't know how many are accepted and choose not to attend.

Most who apply WANT to get in.  I am sure not many turn it down.  It is good gig if you can get it! 

keewart posted:

2019Dad posted:

Impossible to tell what their acceptance rate is. 4,000 apply, 250 attend, but we don't know how many are accepted and choose not to attend.

Most who apply WANT to get in.  I am sure not many turn it down.  It is good gig if you can get it! 

 

Looking at their different rosters looks like 90% of the applicants come from VA, followed by NC. with a few other states spattered in. They compete in the USCAA. 

2019Dad posted:

Impossible to tell what their acceptance rate is. 4,000 apply, 250 attend, but we don't know how many are accepted and choose not to attend.

From what I have read, is they keep the classes around 250, sometimes a bit more sometimes a bit less. A lot of it depends on how many contracts they have going on. A contract for a ship guarantees labor for 7 years. 

I hadn't heard of this program.  It's a great idea.  I teach at a state university.  Many of my students aren't really interested in college even though they have the ability to do well there--they are just filling a seat to try to collect a diploma so they can get a job.  A lot of those kids would be better off learning a trade:  They could earn more than they likely will with their college degrees, they can choose work that can't be sent overseas (your plumbing or electric can't be repaired from a call center in India), and there is often the option to be one's own boss/run a small business.  The demand is there:  for example, the average age of linemen working for electric utilities is north of 50.  Those jobs can pay $100k a year with OT and have great benefits, and the companies are scrambling to find young folks to backfill for the workers who will be retiring soon.

At the risk of nitpicking:  Needing "a near 4.0" GPA isn't tougher to get into than Yale (mean Yale HS GPA=4.19).  That's actually another reason this program is a great idea.  University admissions have gotten ridiculously competitive, and graduating from college with a degree in History and a 2.3 GPA may not even justify the cost of attending.  (I teach History--no disrespect intended at all.)  My basement flooded and I lost power during each of the two recent hurricanes.  Without good plumbers, electricians, utility linemen, etc., etc. life as we know it ain't possible.