When starting a new job, the type of skills training you will receive is important. Many jobs feature what is called "on-the-job training," or OJT, while certain trades first require time spent in an apprenticeship. OJT is just what it says: Training on the job for the job you're being paid to do. An apprenticeship is a defined period of time learning and working under a tradesman prior to becoming a tradesman yourself.
Almost any job outside of the skilled trades such as carpentry and plumbing can feature a period of OJT. At its most basic, on-the-job training is a period of time spent learning a job's skill sets. In OJT programs, employers often provide structured hands-on experience and peer or supervisor mentoring and training prior to an employee assuming the responsibilities of the job. Common OJT programs include a mix of hands-on practical training combined with formal lesson-type education.
Apprenticeship programs are most common in the skilled trades, such as when becoming an electrician. In many cases, anywhere from one to six years are spent as an apprentice learning from journeymen and masters of the chosen trade. Formal licensure is also often required in some skilled trades, and serving an apprenticeship is part of obtaining a tradesman's license. Many apprentices spend time taking formal trade-related classes during their apprenticeships as well.
Testing and assessment is one activity that OJT and apprenticeship programs sometimes have in common. Many OJT programs require employer-mandated formal testing for program completion while others do not. Most apprenticeship programs require periodic assessment and final formal testing plus an inspection of the apprentice's work by a master in the trade. If the apprentice is going into a licensed skilled trade such as plumbing or carpentry, much time is spent studying for the state-mandated licensing exam.
Apprenticeship is only one step in a long process, with journeyman and then master tradesman being the other two. OJT programs can involve as little as a day of informal training or several weeks or months of formal training and testing. Labor unions and manufacturing and construction industries have been traditional sources of apprenticeship training programs. Apprentices are always supervised by journeymen and masters of the trade they're learning and masters are responsible for their work at all times.
- Applied Performance Strategies, Inc.: Structured On-the-Job-Training (OJT) Programs
- Washington State Department of Labor & Industries: What Is Apprenticeship?
- WorkOne.com: Typical On-the-Job Training Needed to Obtain Competency in the Occupation
- California Department of Industrial Relations: Apprenticeship Programs Information Guide
- City of Salina: Application for Skilled Trade Licence
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