What is the role of vocational education and trade schools in today’s U.S. labor market?
With higher education becoming evermore inaccessible due to the financial strain it places on students, many Gen Zers are showing increasing interest in developing practical skills instead of going to college. In addition, the hiring shortages that affected several fields since the onset of the pandemic — especially service jobs — have accelerated the need for the quick integration of people into the labor market.
To meet these developments head-on, there has been a push at the national level to fund institutions that provide vocational education courses, and several colleges have been proactively incorporating vocational courses within their curricula, to provide undergraduates with valuable training opportunities.
Add to this the growing willingness of employers in certain fields to shift to a more skill-based approach to hiring (as opposed to a focus on experience or degrees) and we can slowly put together the elements of a resurgence of vocational training and occupations.
With this in mind, the following analysis aims to document the state of vocational education and labor market across some of the largest metropolitan areas in the United States. For a quick summary of our findings on the top 20 U.S. metros for vocational education and jobs read the following section. Or, for more details on the data used in this analysis, check out our methodology.
The study also includes two parts that analyze metro performances across several individual indicators. Click on the links below to jump to each section:
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- Vocational Education Infrastructure – We highlight the number of institutions that provide training programs as well as awards/certificates to those who complete them. We also look at the most popular courses at a national and metro level.
- Vocational Job Opportunities & Living Costs – We analyze metrics on the number of vocational jobs, the percentage share of these occupations across the local labor market, average wages for vocational workers, unemployment rates, and a life- quality index.
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New York Leads Ranking Following Top Performances in Vocational Training Facilities & Job Opportunities
The nation’s largest metro areas are best equipped to nurture and absorb talent in vocational fields. This is demonstrated by our top three, which includes the likes of New York City (73.7 points), Los Angeles (70.4 points) and Chicago (54.6 points) at a significant distance from other entries in the ranking.
In first place, New York City is home to the highest number of institutions that award both postsecondary and non-credit education certificates, as well as employment opportunities for workers in vocational fields. Moreover, the Northeastern metro also provides one of the more enticing wages for professionals in these jobs, boasting the fourth-highest mean annual wages in the ranking.
Next up, Los Angeles had a host of top performances, which managed to outweigh some of its poor showings in terms of the high costs associated with living in the metro area. For instance, according to the most recently available data, Los Angeles handed out the highest number of postsecondary awards across the top 20 and was second-best to New York for total number of vocational jobs, as well as the number of institutions that granted vocational education-related awards.
Closing out the top three, Chicago is the most prominent Midwestern entry in our ranking due to its remarkable vocational education infrastructure. Specifically, the Illinois Medical School, First Institute, Fox College, and the CAAN Academy of Nursing are among the prime destinations for students looking to gain various patient care and medical skills, whereas those looking for a future job in the beauty industry might head to Pivot Point Academy.
Furthermore, Chicago’s efforts to facilitate the transition of trade school trainees into jobs that fit their skillsets earned the Windy City a third-place finish for employment in vocational fields.
Next, Miami’s solid showings across several metrics secured it a fourth-place finish ahead of Phoenix. The two metros were neck and neck behind Los Angeles for the number of postsecondary certificates awarded. They also placed fifth and sixth, respectively, for their vocational job densities (by percentage).
Meanwhile, some of the lower-ranking metros on the list also stood out for their performances across specific indicators. Namely, Riverside, Calif., (9th place) came out on top for percentage of vocational occupations for every 1,000 jobs within the metropolitan statistical area, ahead of Orlando, Fla., and Indianapolis.
Besides Miami, three other Southern metros also made it into the top half of the ranking —Dallas (6th place), Houston (8th place) and Atlanta (10th place). Dallas’ best showing was for its total number of vocational jobs. It was fourth for this metric, behind the dominant trio of New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. Then, Houston tied with Atlanta in third place for the lowest cost of living across the ranking.
In terms of incomes, San Francisco (11th place overall) had the highest average salaries among top-20 entries. It was followed by Seattle (#14) and Boston (#15).
Although Cincinnati ended up in 19th place, the Ohio metro had some noteworthy performances: It came in first in terms of the life-quality index, boasted the second-lowest unemployment rate and had the fourth-highest percentage of vocational jobs among the top 20.
New York, Los Angeles & Chicago Home to 628 Vocational Education Institutions
At the metro level, New York, Los Angeles and Chicago have the highest numbers of institutions granting both postsecondary and non-credit education awards. Between them, the top three entries are home to roughly 628 of these vocational education institutions.
Not to be outdone, Western metros in our ranking boast the highest number of non-credit-granting (120) and postsecondary institutes (436). Even though more than one-third of them are located in Los Angeles, educational facilities across the region are much more dispersed than in the Northeast, where New York hosts 200 out of a total of 339 post-graduate, as well as more than half of the 112 non-credit-granting institutions.
Otherwise, in the Midwest, Chicago boasts 117 postsecondary institutions — nearly the same as all of the other entries from this region put together. Here again, the Chicago metro has three times the number of non-credit-granting institutions as runners-up Cincinnati and Minneapolis in this category.
Finally, in the South, Miami is an important hub for vocational education training: It’s home to more than 100 postsecondary institutions. The two Texas metros on our list — Houston and Dallas — share a total of 123 institutions granting postsecondary awards and 26 non-credit vocational training facilities.
While the current analysis focuses on vocational education at metro level, it’s worth pointing out that there are also statewide efforts to encourage Americans to embrace skills training courses. To that end, a recent report by the National Governors Association highlighted nearly 31 governors with initiatives geared toward workforce development programs through vocational training programs.
Vocational Education Institutions in Phoenix Handed Out More Postsecondary Awards Than New York
While the three metro areas with the largest population sizes have the most extensive educational infrastructures in place for vocational training, there are a few noteworthy upsets to the hierarchy when we look at which cities hand out the most awards.
For example, Los Angeles overtakes New York with nearly double the volume of awards (43,419 as opposed to 22,445). Then, Phoenix — which ranked seventh for its total number of educational institutions that offered vocational training — was the runner-up with a 31,512 awards total.
In fact, across all Western entries, the region totaled roughly 131,000 awards between July 1, 2021, and June 30, 2022. By comparison, Southern metros on the list totaled 100,170, while Northeastern entries were just below the 36,000-mark.
Among Southern metros, Miami (with a total of 29,866 awards) and Orlando (with a total of 18,858 awards) were major contributors.
Finally, Chicago and Indianapolis amassed the highest numbers of awards across the Midwest (47,845) — more than twice the combined total of Cincinnati, Detroit and Minneapolis.
Women Receive Highest Number of Awards Across Top 10 Vocational Education Courses in U.S.
Throughout the last few decades, the presence of women in the labor force and higher education has increased exponentially: Since the 1970s, the composition of both students and faculty members has shifted dramatically in their favor, but women have been making significant inroads into vocational education, as well.
In fact, of the 10 most popular vocation training programs in the U.S., six recorded strong female majorities among their graduates — especially service and caretaking roles, which are expected to continue their growth in the coming years, thereby increasing demand for professionals in these specializations.
With most of the Boomer generation now in retirement and following the pandemic, many people opted to go into the ever-expanding health care, nursing and patient care sectors: Between 2022 and 2024, some 49,000 awards were distributed to medical and clinical assistants, while the number of licensed nurses grew by 42,000. Both courses overwhelmingly attract female workers, whereas men are more predominant in training programs aimed at paramedics and emergency technician roles. The split in the latter is 63% in men’s favor, although that share is out of a smaller total of approximately 23,000 awards given during the same period.
Vocational beauty training is also highly popular: Cosmetology courses recorded the second-highest number of awards (47,000), and aestheticians and skin care specialist licenses made the top five with nearly 40,000 awards presented. Once again, these studies are mainly completed by women (96 and 99%, respectively). In terms of future employment prospects, the group of jobs that includes cosmetologists — along with hairstylists and barbers — is projected to grow 7% throughout the next decade, which is faster than the average for all occupations, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Next, general business administration studies display a much less pronounced gender gap, although women still received the majority of the 33,000 awards handed out in the surveyed period. The tilt is 59% to 41% in favor of female students.
Among vocational education programs with a predominantly male demographic, welding courses are the most frequented with nearly 43,000 licenses awarded between 2021 and 2022. Similarly, males make up around 92% of students who have completed mechanics training and 86% of those awarded bus, truck, and commercial vehicle operator or instructor licenses. Combined, the two specializations handed out roughly 41,000 awards.
Doug Ressler, business intelligence manager at Yardi Systems, emphasized the responsiveness of these vocational courses to changes in the modern labor force, as well as their overall flexibility in the training process:
“While four-year degrees still hold significant value, especially for certain professions, vocational training is carving out a strong niche,” he said. “These courses are generally less expensive and shorter in duration, rendering them an attractive option for students looking to enter the workforce quickly without accumulating significant debt. Then, there is the issue of flexible learning options, including online and hybrid models, which save time and money for both providers and students, making vocational training more accessible to a broader audience.”
Ressler added that students often get to develop not only their technical skills, but also soft skills — such as communication, teamwork and problem-solving — which provide increased and sustained benefits for long-term employment.
Western Metros Total 11,000+ Awards for Medical Assistants, Midwest Leads for Nursing Training Programs
Looking more closely at the metro level, medical assistant courses play an especially prominent role in Los Angeles. Here, almost 4,000 awards were issued to graduates in this field. Moreover, we see the highest total of awards for this specialization (11,218) throughout the Western entries in our ranking with New York City, Houston and Miami also producing significant numbers of awards.
Likewise, Chicago, Indianapolis and Minneapolis are also prolific in terms of nursing and patient care certificates. Specifically, some 3,697 nursing and patient care students received training in Chicago with another 2,000 graduating from vocational education programs in Indianapolis.
While there’s a shortage of men taking on careers in nursing and patient care, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, the number of male nurses has increased threefold since the 1970s — and the demand for more diversity in this field remains high.
In terms of vocational training, we can also see that, in some metro areas, men demonstrate higher levels of interest in completing training programs that could lend them a job in the expanding health care industry. For instance, San Diego and Atlanta have the highest percentages of men receiving medical assistant awards, whereas Chicago stands out in terms of nursing programs. For both specializations, 14% of award recipients are men, which is above the national average of 7% and 9%, respectively.
As we mentioned, the field of emergency medical technology (EMT) is the most popular health care-related specialization for men with 63% of graduates at the national level being male. And, if we look at places that stand out in terms of the participation of men in these training programs, Chicago (70%); Riverside, Calif., (72%); and Miami (74%) stand out.
Training for a Beauty Industry Job: Los Angeles & New York Still Go-To Places
Beauty industry jobs are also popular with vocational courses for cosmetologists. New York and Los Angeles yield the highest number of awards (both with more than 1,900 handed out for this specialization), as well as Dallas, Miami and Chicago. And, although Philadelphia’s total was lower, cosmetology is nevertheless the #1 training program in the Pennsylvania metropolitan area.
New York, Los Angeles and Chicago are also equally prolific in training future aestheticians with the three metros producing a combined 6,600 awards for this specialization. Phoenix, Miami and Dallas also each handed out more than 1,000 awards for these beauty training programs.
Houston Registers Highest Number of Welding Training Awards
Looking at the best places for those who want to develop skills that can land them a welding job, Houston stands out as the most productive training hub for this profession. The Texas metro delivered more awards for welders than runners-up Denver and Chicago combined, as well as 15 times more than Philadelphia.
Granted, that’s no surprise given how many of the active industries in Houston require the work of welders, such as car and industrial manufacturing; ship- and boat-building; and gas and oil pipeline transportation.
What’s more, with an eye on the aging demographic of welders currently employed and possible future labor force shortages, some metros have been working to attract more women into its manufacturing programs. For instance, Philadelphia’s Women in Nontraditional Careers program aims to support women who choose to work in construction, manufacturing or transportation jobs.
New York Leads for Total Number of Vocational Jobs, but Riverside, Calif., Is #1 for Vocational Job Density
Given the emphasis on employability for those going down the vocational education pathway, we analyzed job opportunities, as well as the percentage of these positions within the context of each top-20 metro’s labor market.
As expected, the leading entries for each metric differ significantly because the triad of the largest metropolitan areas of New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago naturally win out when we look at the sheer number of vocational jobs. More precisely, New York has some 6.1 million jobs that require some form of vocational training. It’s followed by Los Angeles with 4.2 million and Chicago with roughly 3 million.
The entries from Texas are next with 2.6 million vocational jobs in Dallas and nearly 2.2 million in Houston.
At the lower end of the top 20, a trio of San Diego; Orlando, Fla., and Denver each totaled almost 1 million vocational positions, while Midwestern metros Indianapolis and Cincinnati closed out the ranking with 760,000 and 750,000 jobs, respectively.
Looking at who ranks high for vocational job density (measured as a percentage of vocational occupations for every 1,000 jobs in the area as of May 2023), we find a top three of Riverside, Calif.; Orlando, Fla.; and Indianapolis.
Notably, 77% of jobs in the citrus capital of the U.S. require vocational training, and Riverside workers benefit from California’s efforts to shift employment requirements from degree-based to skill-based. For example, since 2015, many state government jobs no longer require a college degree. Furthermore, since the staffing shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic, many companies have also been eager to rethink hiring requirements.
Orlando placed second, with 72% of every 1,000 jobs fitting that category, while Indianapolis closed off the podium with 71%.
Besides Indiana’s capital, the first half of the vocational job density ranking features three more Midwestern entries. Cincinnati placed highest in fourth place and Detroit and Chicago landed in eighth and 10th places, respectively.
Los Angeles and New York — which dominated the ranking in terms of sheer volume of vocational occupations — placed 9th and 16th with 67% and 65%, respectively, of jobs in the area requiring vocational training.
Workers in Vocational Jobs in Western Metros Among Highest Earners
For many years, San Francisco was synonymous with tech jobs and their generous salaries. But now, workers in vocational fields can also expect higher-than-average incomes when working here.
As a matter of fact, at $61,000 per year, the northern California metropolitan area took the lead for the mean wage for vocational jobs metric. It was followed closely by Seattle with $59,000. Further behind in third place, Boston salaries topped out at an average of $55,000 per year.
Plus, Western metropolitan areas are especially lucrative destinations for professionals in various vocational jobs. For instance, average annual salaries in Denver are only a few hundred dollars behind New York’s (at approximately $54,000). And, in addition to San Francisco, California provides the highest number of metros with generous remuneration offers for vocational workers.
Further down the California coast, San Diego professionals can expect to earn an average of $51,000 per year, while Los Angeles’ mean yearly salary for vocational jobs is just below that threshold.
Across the Midwest, Minneapolis outranks Chicago by less than $1,000 per year in additional income for vocational job workers, who can expect to earn around $50,000 in Minnesota’s largest metro area. Meanwhile, Rust Belt metro areas — like Detroit, Indianapolis and Cincinnati — are averaging between $45,000 and $46,000 per year.
Otherwise, wages for vocational professions within the Southern entries that made our ranking are comparatively low and clustered near the bottom of the list. The highest-ranking among these is Miami in 14th place with a mean annual salary of $46,000. Orlando, Fla., wrapped up the list with $42,000.
Midwestern Metros Lead Ranking for Lowest Cost of Living & Unemployment
Of course, hiring opportunities and average earnings are only part of the picture when it comes to finding the right place to live and work in. Affordability and a good quality of life also weigh heavily when making decisions about accepting a position, especially when it requires relocating.
For this reason, we concluded our analysis by applying a life-quality index to our top 20 entries, along with a comparison of unemployment percentages.
Measuring regional price parity for goods, housing, utilities and various other services, the life-quality index provided a platform for Midwestern entries to shine with former Rust Belt metros Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Detroit making up the podium.
The top three entries for this metric rank below the average cost of living by 7% in the case of Cincinnati and Indianapolis and 4% for Detroit. Then, the list of metro areas that are more affordable includes two more entries: Atlanta and Houston’s prices for various essential goods and services come in 2% lower than the national average.
Interestingly, Orlando, Fla., and Philadelphia are closest to the reference point for cost of living in the United States, which is set at 100 by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Despite boasting some of the highest earnings across the ranking, metropolitan areas across the West are also the priciest places for workers to live — with the exception of Riverside, Calif., and Phoenix that are closer to the national average. For example, paying for rent, utilities, and other goods is nearly 18% more expensive in San Francisco and 15% more costly in San Diego than Orlando, Fla.
In the Northeast, New York City and Boston hold the negative record (12% to 13% higher cost of living), while Miami is the most expensive Southern metro to live in from our ranking.
Up north, the Minneapolis metro had the lowest unemployment rate on the list at 3.2%, while Denver and Cincinnati shared second place with 3.3%. Several other entries were tied, including Indianapolis and Orlando in third place (3.6%), and Seattle and Dallas in fifth (3.8%).
Somewhat surprisingly, Detroit’s 5% unemployment was below that of a few big names, including Houston (5.1%), New York City and Los Angeles (both at 5.4%). Riverside, Calif., had the highest rate at 5.7%.
