Students' Experiences of a Women-Only Automotive Service Technician Pre-apprenticeship Program
Keywords:
women, automotive, service technician, pre-apprenticeship, students, experienceAbstract
A career in the skilled trades offers women many benefits, yet efforts to recruit women into this career path have had limited success. A longitudinal study was conducted to explore students’ experiences with a women-centered Automotive Service Training pre-apprenticeship program that included innovations designed to support women entering this skilled trade. The women-only program provided a gender-sensitive classroom environment, and holistic program content to meet the needs of women holding multiple roles, as well as social and personal supports in the form of coaching, mentoring and advocacy. Results of the study indicate that participants made gains in key workplace competencies and were very satisfied with the program. The program provided several advantages: it helped students to decide if this was indeed the career for them, prepared them for the work world, and gave them the confidence and skills they needed for success.
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