Training programs are gaining in popularity due to people attempting to find any and all means to “get ahead.” Where I live, many training programs are only offered to the unemployed because the demand is so much greater than the supply. But is it worth it?
I went to graduate school for partly the same reason. I truly wanted my professional degree but I was too confident that obtaining it would put me another step ahead of the average job searcher. I'm working now, in a decent job, paying the bills, saving money, but it has nothing to do with either of my two degrees. So I'm left thinking maybe I'm the silly one paying back tons of school debt, for what?
Many who have spent months in training programs are still receiving unemployment, or worse still, at the unemployment office everyday. Surely they think some of the same things as myself. While training programs are usually free, again the question about worth is even more salient.
True, when that job does eventually show itself it is always more beneficial to have spent your non-working time doing something useful instead of sitting around. I wonder how many people are going through the same. The Labor Department states that last year hundreds of thousands of people went through training programs and are still not working. Even though the stimulus package pumped $1.4 billion into these programs.
What do companies really want? No one is sure anyway. There are tons of sites and articles saying do this, or don't do that, and we may follow them or we might not. The fact is the job market is tough. Only one thing is certain: companies still want the most qualified employees, like they have always wanted. Job training is something to consider, even if right now it only serves to break the monotony of the job search process.
By: Samantha Taylor
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