Perceptions of Trades Training Gaining Traction Over University

Canadians twice as likely to advise a young person to take trades or apprenticeship training than they are to recommend a general university program.

The latest wave of the Survey on Employment and Skills asked Canadians to think about what advice they would give to a young person regarding their career path. Specifically, they were asked whether they would encourage a child to enroll in a job-oriented trade school or apprenticeship program, or a general university program. Three in five (59%) said they would encourage the child to opt for a job-oriented trade school, twice as many as the proportion that would recommend a general university program (26%). An additional 15 percent did not express an opinion either way.

This question was asked 30 years ago, in two Environics Focus Canada surveys. At that time, job-oriented trades or apprenticeship training was also favoured over a general university program. Since 1995, however, the proportion favouring trades training has increased by seven percentage points (from 52% to 59%) while the proportion favouring a general university program has dropped by 13 points (from 39% to 26%). The proportion expressing no opinion has increased (from 9% to 15%).