The U.S. Department of Education is the primary agency for information on vocational and adult education. However, additional information is available from other agencies including the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Federal Trade Commission and the National Research Center for Career and Technical Information. This section provides an overview of and links to the information from these agencies.

Contents

Guides to Resources

U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education

http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ovae/index.html

The Office of Vocational and Adult Education website has resources on vocational and adult education programs and related issues for young people and adult learners. Highlights include:

Students.gov - Career/Vocational students

http://www.students.gov/STUGOVWebApp/Public?topicID=8&operation=topic

Billed as the 'student gateway to the U.S. government', the career/vocational page at students.gov has a nice collection of governmental and non-governmental resources that will help students make career choices and decide if a technical or vocational school is right for them.

What Do You Like? Exploring Career Information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

http://www.bls.gov/k12/index.htm

A career guide from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that lists a variety of occupations associated with 12 different areas of interest (reading, law, building & fixing things, math, science, music & arts, sports, helping people, managing money, social studies, nature, and computers). Each occupation has a fact sheet describing the job duties, pay, education involved, a list of related professions, and links to more information.

Choosing a Career or Vocational School, Federal Trade Commission

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/services/votech.shtm

This site has tips from the Federal Trade Commission on choosing a reputable vocational or correspondence school, along with information on how to file a complaint if you are unsatisfied with the quality of the training you receive.

National Research Center for Career and Technical Education

http://www.nccte.org

Funded by the Office of Vocational and Adult Education, the mission of the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education is to improve the achievements of high school and postsecondary students by providing technical assistance to states, professional development for practitioners, and dissemination of research in the field. The main audience for this site is educators, with research publications and webcasts on achievement and professional development.