Experiencing pre-apprenticeships: Participants' views of a program with dual purposes

Pre-apprenticeships, preparatory training off-the-job for entry into apprenticeships, have been in existence for several decades. Depending on the prevailing economic conditions, they have been asked to serve two major purposes: as labour market programs to discipline young unemployed people into the regime of study and work, and as one means of solving skill shortage problems in particular industries or the traditional trades in general. Research has previously focused mainly on their roles in succeeding in these purposes. There has, however, been little empirical research into the experiences of the participants themselves. This paper reports on part of a national project on pre-apprenticeships carried out during 2005-6. As part of this project, students in a number of courses in two States were surveyed about their experiences in their courses, and two longitudinal case studies were carried out, in different industry areas. The research revealed important differences among locations and among industry areas.