ON FAST TRACK
Get into workforce quickly.
For many candidates, time is of the essence when it comes to making a career change, and for these students, fast-track educational programs — often offered at local community colleges — can be just the ticket.
Lone Star College’s fast-track training in a variety of industries results in earning a certificate. Students can get trained and get hired with fast-track certificates in CISCO network administration, accounting assistant, automotive technician, heavy equipment operator, floor-hand roustabout, HVAC technician, dental assistant, massage therapy and nurse aide. Credit hours are not earned with fast-track programs, as these are designed for quick industry education without the need for core classes. These programs can be completed in as little as eight weeks.
Many of the jobs offer competitive salaries with benefits. The median salary for an accounting assistant, for example, is $65,000, and dental assistants can earn more than $32,000 annually.
“Many candidates who pursue these fast-track programs are looking to enhance their skills or earn a certificate, while others are looking for a career change in a short period of time,” said Linda Head, associate vice chancellor, workforce educa- tion and corporate partnerships, Lone Star College.
San Jacinto College offers technical programs that cater to the high-growth and high-demand areas across the Houston and southeast Texas region. Its programs allow people to train fast and gain employment in jobs that are key for the expansion projects going on within the petrochemical industry; as such, San Jacinto College has developed more condensed training programs that include nondestructive testing, welding, process technology, instrumentation and electrical.
It has one-year certificates in many of these areas to allow graduates to gain employment immediately and then come back for additional training to move up in their careers.
San Jacinto College also offers noncredit training courses in areas such as scaffolding, pipefitting and electrical that can get someone the credentials he or she needs to begin working in a matter of weeks. Starting salaries vary with the job, but pipefitters can make almost as much as welders, at about $46,000. Electrician helpers can make approximately $34,000, which can increase as they get more work experience.
“You can train fast, enter the workforce, gain experience while taking additional classes to increase (your) skill set, earn a certificate of technology or associate degree and progress in your chosen industry,” said Allatia Harris, vice chancellor of strategic initiatives, San Jacinto College.
Houston Community College features various fast-track programs, including twoyear associate and certificate programs and two- to three-semester-long certificates in the areas of computer systems networking, automotive technology, industrial electricity, construction technology, as well as a 14-month heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) technician certification program.
Salaries are favorable in many areas; construction managers can earn up to $30.90 an hour and $64,000 annually, while cyber security professionals can earn up to $86,170 annually. In Texas, HVAC technicians earn a median salary of $40,610 per year, which can go as high as $61,460.
“HVAC technicians in particular are seeing some of the highest demand in the job market due to the large need of maintenance and installation of such equipment in the greater Houston area,” said Claudia Deschamps, director of public relations, Houston Community College. For Lone Star College, visit www. lonestar.edu. For San Jacinto College, visit
www.sanjac.edu. For HCC, visit www.hccs.edu.