In schools across Tennessee, students enter classrooms each year with high hopes and big dreams for their futures. While they complete core coursework in English, math, and other subjects, many students need more opportunities to connect what they are learning in school with real-world careers in fields like healthcare, engineering, advanced manufacturing, teaching, and more.
Tennessee has made progress in expanding work-based learning experiences in recent years, reflecting the state’s growing focus on helping students explore careers before graduation. Pre-apprenticeships are a premier example of these learning experiences, but access remains uneven: certified pre-apprenticeship programs are currently only available in 17 of Tennessee’s 95 counties.
That gap matters because career-aligned experiences centered on work-based learning are one of four pillars of Tennessee's FutureReadyTN vision, which reimagines high school so that all students have access to these learning experiences. Research from Tennessee’s Office of Evidence and Impact in 2025 shows that students who participate in work-based learning see improved high school completion rates, strong postsecondary and career transitions, and higher wages upon entering the workforce.
A pre-apprenticeship makes students’ aspirations more tangible by providing hands-on experience, professional skill development, mentorship, and academic credit while they are still in high school. Across Tennessee, exemplar pre-apprenticeship programs are exposing students to high-wage, high-demand careers while helping employers develop talent pipelines in critical industries.
Pre-Apprenticeships Blend Learning and Training for Students
While pre-apprenticeship programs vary by industry and community, high-quality programs share several core components that help students gain relevant experience and prepare for their next step:
- Skills acquisition and hands-on experience: Students pair industry-approved classroom learning with workplace simulations or on-the-job experience to acquire skills and work experience.
- Credential or credit attainment: Students may earn secondary and postsecondary credit that can accelerate their career path while still in high school.
- Career exploration and guidance: Exposure to multiple career paths, counseling, and mentorship help ensure students make informed decisions about their long-term career goals.
- Wraparound support services: Transportation assistance, supply stipends, and other services can reduce barriers to completion.
- Facilitated transition: Connections to employment or enrollment in a registered apprenticeship program help students continue along their chosen career pathway.
Pre-Apprenticeships in Action: Models of Success
Across the state, schools and employers are partnering to give high school students career exposure, academic credit, and hands-on experience. A pair of student-centered programs at Nurses Middle College-Nashville and Valmont Industries offer examples of how pre-apprenticeship programs can connect classroom learning with future career opportunities.
Nurses Middle College-Nashville
Opened in 2025, Nurses Middle College-Nashville is a public charter school serving students in grades 9-12 and preparing them for careers in healthcare fields. The pre-apprenticeship nursing program provides exposure to the nursing field before graduation. Students are actively mentored by a full-time healthcare employee and earn postsecondary credit through dual enrollment. At graduation, students can earn a licensed practical nurse credential that prepares them to enter full-time employment, or they may pursue further education. By integrating the pre-apprenticeship into the learning model, the program allows students to build skills, confidence, and professional identity before graduation. The experience is designed to give students a stronger foundation to transition into healthcare and nursing careers and thrive from day one.
Valmont Industries
Valmont Industries in Jasper, Tennessee, launched the first pre-apprenticeship program in Tennessee in 2019, giving high school students from Marion and Sequatchie counties the opportunity to combine classroom academic math instruction with real-world experience as fitter/welders. Students begin by shadowing experienced welders before moving into hands-on work in weld booths.
The program also helps Valmont develop a strong talent pipeline. In 2025, the company hired 10 work-based learning students as part-time employees through the pre-apprenticeship program. One year later, all 10 participating students received full-time job offers to launch their careers immediately following graduation.
Looking Ahead
Pre-apprenticeships do more than introduce students to careers — they turn awareness into hands-on experience and create pathways to high-wage, high-demand jobs. Expanding pre-apprenticeships across the state will connect more young people to rewarding careers, allow them to see themselves in these roles, strengthen the state’s talent pipeline, and ensure Tennessee’s workforce is prepared to thrive in the future.
Liza Ambrose is pathways manager at SCORE.