Not a Backup Plan

How Schools Can Introduce the Trades as Equal Options to College

Walk into most high schools today, and you’ll see a familiar script: SAT prep, college fairs, guidance counselors pushing four-year degrees as the standard of success. And while higher education can be the right choice for many, there’s a silent disservice happening in the process - the trades are still treated as a backup plan.

That framing doesn’t just hurt students who could thrive in a hands-on career; it also deepens the skilled labor shortage that industries from construction to manufacturing are grappling with.

It’s time to flip the script. The trades should be introduced as equal, valuable, and respected options, not as fallback choices for those who “aren’t cut out for college.”

The Stigma Problem

For decades, vocational education has carried a stigma. Students with strong academic records are steered toward universities, while those who struggle are often pushed toward tech schools or apprenticeships. This reinforces the false idea that trades are for people with “fewer options,” rather than for those who want to build essential, high-paying, and highly skilled careers.

The result? Many young people never even consider welding, machining, plumbing, or electrical work as pathways—not because they don’t have interest, but because no one presented those careers as aspirational.

Adults in schools need to stop falsely projecting that image. As someone who was constantly pushed by my guidance counselors to apply for more colleges because I had "too much potential as a young woman of color to waste at tech school"...how do you think that made me feel hearing? And what do you even mean by that...what makes someone think they can say something like that. Just to throw that out there, those kinds of remarks are forms of microaggressions. Be a better adult.

The Value of Choice

The reality is that trades careers are every bit as demanding and rewarding as careers that require a four-year degree. Many roles require years of training, advanced certifications, and constant upskilling. They offer competitive pay, entrepreneurial opportunities, and, perhaps most importantly, tangible impact.

Schools have the power to normalize that reality if they start treating trades programs as a choice, not by chance.

What Schools Can Do Differently

1. Present Trades and College Side-by-Side - When guidance counselors talk to students about options, the trades should be listed next to universities, not beneath them. A path into an apprenticeship deserves the same enthusiasm as a college acceptance letter

2. Host Career Days with Real Representation - Tradespeople should be at the table during career fairs, demoing equipment, talking about salaries, and sharing their own success stories. Visibility matters

3. Offer Early Exposure - Partnerships with local trade schools and businesses can give high school students hands-on experience before graduation. Even a single shop class or a field trip can spark curiosity. This is also wildly beneficial to business owners in the area!

4. Highlight Financial Realities - Schools often float over the student debt conversation. Presenting the trades as an option where students can earn while they learn is a game-changer for those worried about taking on tens of thousands in loans, especially those in marginalized communities who've struggled with higher education and finances

5. Language Matters - Teachers, counselors, and administrators need to check the way they frame trades. Calling them “backup plans” or “alternatives” reinforces stigma. Calling them “career pathways” levels the field. If we (younger people/Gen Z) are expected to properly communicate...so should the guidance counselors and teachers that are instructing our next generation.

Why It Matters Now

The trades aren’t just another career choice. They're the foundation of everything around us. Without them, buildings don’t go up, machines don’t run, and power doesn’t flow. Elevating the trades in our schools isn’t just about fairness—it’s about securing the future workforce.

Equal, Not Optional

The truth is simple: the trades aren’t for those who “couldn’t” go to college. They’re for those who choose to build, fix, and create. And until schools present them that way, we’ll keep losing brilliant, capable young people to outdated stereotypes.

It’s time to stop treating the trades like Plan B, and start recognizing them as Plan A for the students who want them.