Community colleges and apprenticeship sponsors: build training together

Community colleges can be related instruction partners for Registered Apprenticeship sponsors. The relationship works best when employers help define the skills to be taught and the college knows how instruction connects to work on the job.

Start with employer needs

The WorkforceGPS resources below describe recurring employer perspectives: value existing facilities and programs, meet employers where they work, involve them before designing a program, and maintain several points of contact over time.

Those are partnership lessons, not evidence that a specific Apprentage customer or college achieved an outcome. Sponsors can use them to ask which occupations, schedules, and instruction formats actually fit participating employers.

Connect instruction to the apprenticeship record

A sponsor defines the occupation, work process, related instruction, and progression in its standards. The college delivers instruction; mentors and employers document on-the-job progress. The parties need a shared understanding of who records completions and who reviews gaps.

Apprentage is designed to keep OJT and related instruction progress visible to sponsors and intermediaries. It does not replace curriculum design, teaching, employer participation, or the college’s academic records.

Sources and next steps

• Employer Perspectives: Insights on How to Build and Maintain Strong Employer-College Partnerships
• Connecting Community Colleges with Employers: A Toolkit for Building Successful Partnerships
• Evidence on Career Pathways Strategies