Fact of the Week: Apprenticeships in the US Increased by 66 Percent Between 2011 and 2021

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, FY 2021 Data and Statistics (Registered Apprenticeship National Results Fiscal Year 2021; accessed March 31, 2023).

Commentary: Between 2011 and 2021, the number of active apprenticeships in the United States increased from 357,692 to 593,690, a 66 percent increase. Moreover, between 2010 and 2020, the number of undergraduates enrolled at U.S. universities fell by over 12 percent. These figures suggest that apprenticeships are becoming a more attractive option for high school graduates in the United States, where apprenticeship rates lag far behind those of other advanced economies like Denmark and Germany. This increase in apprenticeships and decrease in college enrollment is almost certainly driven by students’ concerns about the costs associated with four-year universities and employers’ concerns about the skills students acquire in college versus what is needed in the workforce.