Earn While You Learn: Jobs that Pay While You Train and “No Experience Necessary” Jobs

In addition to a solid paycheck — it’s reasonable to expect overall work satisfaction in return. If your current job isn’t measuring up, maybe it’s time for a change.

But what if you want to try something new without having to start over in school or earn multiple certifications before getting started? Another option is open to you: a job with paid training and no experience needed. Paid training jobs, or apprenticeships, prepare you for a new career while you’re earning a paycheck, and many of them are hiring regardless of the state of the economy. In fact, many jobs that offer paid training have a significant overlap with the type of jobs that do well in a recession. 

What Is an Apprenticeship?

An apprenticeship is an agreement in which a novice worker in a given field spends time working alongside an established expert in that field — essentially, an on-the-job training program that pays. Sometimes this type of arrangement provides the expert with assistance on the job and gives the apprentice a chance to work with and learn from a “master” in a particular job. Apprenticeship is a term usually associated with specific trades, e.g., carpentry, plumbing, and others, but it has since grown to include a wide variety of “no experience needed” jobs. 

How Do I Find Legitimate Jobs with Paid Training?

According to the US Department of Labor, apprenticeships should incorporate five basic benchmarks:

• Business Involvement. In order to teach up-to-date best practices, codes, and rules for a given industry, the individual or company offering the knowledge needs to understand them. This means that the best apprenticeship opportunities come from companies working directly in their respective industry. A retiree or former business will have a lot of experience to convey, but as technologies and techniques evolve, they may end up teaching outdated or inapplicable information.
• Structured Training. Just as unpaid internships for college students require that employers meet certain experience standards, trustworthy jobs with paid training must do so as well. A would-be worker that is immediately funneled into unskilled labor or unrelated tasks misses the opportunity to learn and grow within the company and industry. In short, while in paid training jobs, workers should be practicing and performing tasks they’ll be expected to do as a full-fledged employee.
• Related Instruction.  A job with paid training should have a timeline for learning and demonstrating mastery of certain skills. Apprentices should also be able to aim for an “end result”: a goal, license, or certification they can achieve or earn, signifying that they’re out of training and into probationary or regular working status.
• Rewards for Skill Gains. As a worker learns, demonstrates, and masters certain skills related to their future position(s), they should be rewarded. This typically takes the form of compensation: A beginning worker may earn a certain amount per hour, for example, but receive a percentage or dollar-based pay boost per hour after passing a specific skills test, or obtaining a particular certification related to their training.
• Nationally-Recognized Credential(s). The title, certifications, or licensing obtained through paid training jobs should be useful to the worker obtaining them, even if they choose to seek employment outside their “teaching” company.  A “Company X” certification that has no meaning or bearing to “Company Y” means that the worker in question has expended a great deal of time and effort achieving recognition within a specific company, rather than an industry. 

Which “No Experience Needed” Jobs Are Hiring?

As economic factors and the coronavirus pandemic have shifted the employment landscape in the US, opportunities for on-the-job training jobs that pay are expanding. Several key sectors have made apprenticeships part of their hiring cycles — namely logistics, food service, medical, and trades, with an emphasis on construction-related skills. 

Logistics / Truck Driving / Paid CDL Training

Truck drivers are the backbone of commerce in the United States, bringing packages and shipments across the country to keep shelves stocked everywhere. An unprecedented shortage of drivers in recent years has made driving an incredibly growth-oriented and profitable career to pursue. Paid CDL training  helps would-be drivers to learn the rules of the road (and their rigs), obtain their CDL license, and earn while they learn. This gives them the opportunity to find work for a variety of trucking companies nationwide, as well as to pursue a future as an owner/operator down the proverbial road. 

Nursing / Phlebotomy

The medical industry is another niche with a variety of paid training jobs available, for example in licensed practical/vocational nursing (LPN/LVN). Phlebotomy (drawing and preparing a patient’s blood) in particular offers a wide range of opportunities post-apprenticeship, from staffing blood banks and mobile blood drives to working as a “floating” provider in testing facilities, hospitals, and medical offices. These paid phlebotomy training job programs offer comprehensive “shadowing” experiences that allow workers to watch medical professionals in action and perform tasks under their careful supervision. Those enrolled in medical programs are typically required to take a certification or licensing test once their teaching company or facility feels they are ready to do so. 

Food Services

The food service industry is changing, and we understand this. While jobs in food services are not currently in high demand as many restaurants are closed or offering limited service leaving many workers out of jobs, at some point in the future they will once again be open and hiring. 

While aspiring chefs often attend culinary school, support staff such as food prep assistants are typically in high demand as well (we understand this industry is currently in a state of flux, but things will improve). These “no experience needed” jobs are available to food-service industry workers looking to expand their knowledge in commercial kitchens, restaurants, or bakeries, and allow them to work alongside professional chefs to learn the trade. Culinary jobs with paid training are an excellent way to pursue employment in a hot field without committing to the financial burden of a degree and tuition.

Trade Skills

Building, renovating, and even demolition require many skilled trade workers; this is one of the reasons paid trade apprenticeships are some of the most well-known opportunities. Electricians, plumbers, carpenters, HVAC technicians, and masons are only a handful of the experts that offer on-the-job training jobs that pay to those looking to enter their respective fields. These often-multiyear agreements between tradespeople and apprentices help ensure well-educated workers, resulting in a safe, quality building. Like medical apprentices, workers aiming for fully-trained status will typically have to take both written and practical tests to obtain certifications and licenses before working unsupervised.

What Are The Many Benefits of Paid Apprenticeships?

In addition to offering access to jobs that do well in a recession, paid apprenticeships also help workers sidestep the overwhelming load of debt that comes with conventional tuition. Paid training jobs also enable apprentices to reliably support their family and financial needs even while they’re in training. By learning hands-on from an active participant in the industry, the practical working knowledge apprentices receive helps ease their transition into a full-fledged position. Finally, these important paid training job programs also help establish organic industry networking, job opportunities, recommendations, and best current practices in the field — benefits that might not otherwise appear in a strictly-classroom setting.