We live in BCS and have a current high school junior. He has expressed an interest in trade school vs traditional college. He is focusing on the idea of electrical right now but is open to other trades. I know Britt Rice offers a free training program that you can work for them while getting certified. I've also seen Blinn has a program at RELLIS. Does anyone have any input or suggestions on the best route for him to look into? He is a good student and has college money set aside so we can pay for a trade school if that is a better option but I worry he needs real world experience. We have only done the college route with our older kids but we are supportive of a trade and just want to help him decide the best way to go about this. Any advice is appreciated.

Lots of great options in the trades, your kid is smart for looking at acquiring skills like that. Something to also consider is the Maritime Academy either in Maritime Engineering or Transportation. They are extremely high paying and are licensing programs and those licenses are gold. They have a lot of the feel of a trade but you get a degree as well and better job security, great for someone who is a good student (don't have to be great) and doesn't want to work in an office. My son graduated a few months ago and is making great money and had 4 offers to choose from. The Engineers do even better and it's not traditional Engineering but very hands on, basically they are making of the health of the ship and especially the engines, some of them are pushing $200k out of school. You just have to be ok with being on a ship and being on a 50/50 schedule (my son works 60 days on, 60 off) as those are the big drawbacks or benefits depending on how you look at them. You also have to be in the Corps in Galveston but it's very different than College Station and no where near as intense. My son loves his job and is spending his time off traveling and planning for future investments to have passive income. Might be worth a visit.

Saw this as well:

Did you know you can start a $60K - $100K+ trade career and pay absolutely nothing out of pocket?

It's called WIOA, a federal program that covers 100% of your trade school costs and most people have never heard of it.

WIOA stands for the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act…

— Tyler Watkins (@tradeschoolpro) April 14, 2026

I've known several that did the Britt Rice apprenticeship program and have asked them why not a trade school program (like Blinn's). Answers were mixed but generally along the lines of;

-Britt Rice they work full time and go to class one evening a week for several years. Their program is set up so at the conclusion you have BOTH the required "on the job hours" and necessary "code and calculation prep/instruction" needed to take and pass the journeyman license. Britt Rice takes care of tracking/documenting all the on the job and classroom hours for them so that part becomes easy and seamless for the apprentice.

-Trade School Programs-Pay tuition (or get grants,etc.) Can't work full time necessarily while going to school and a little more onus on the individual to figure out their plan for on the job hours and tracking. I would guess some schools probably have ties to local companies to feed them students for on the job hours but I don't know for sure. That would make some sense.

Britt Rice loses some along the way as they get some experience and move to smaller firms in town that pay apprentices a little more per hour. I don't know if those firms put them in classes or help them prepare for the exam in some formal way or not.

As a commercial journeyman electrician who went to trade school, I would recommend IEC or the Union (IBEW), depending on what route he wants to go. There are pros and cons to each, please do your research:

IBEW Local 716 (Houston)
Distance: Approximately 95 miles.
Address: 1475 North Loop W, Houston, TX 77008.
Phone: (713) 869-2592.

IEC Texas Gulf Coast (Houston)
Distance: Approximately 90 miles.
Address: 601 N. Shepherd Dr, Suite 330, Houston, TX 77007.
Phone: (713) 869-1976.