Trying to enter top trade schools can feel like taking job interviews.

While trade school admission requirements vary, you'll have to answer interview questions as a test of your communication skills and problem-solving skills.

On top of that, you'd have to ensure that you properly choose the right trade school to prepare for these interviews.

We've prepared this guide to help you determine whether going to a trade school is the right path for you. In addition, we've listed several interview questions for entry-level positions you can practice answering as a mock interview.

At the end of this guide, you can find interview questions for an organization.

Why Did You Choose Your Trade School Program?

This question will test your confidence in your decision on a specific trade school program.

If an interviewer asks you this, they are likely trying to see whether you have performed adequate research on various career paths before choosing your trade school program.

Dedicating yourself to a particular field of study would hopefully mean that you have a genuine interest or passion for it, and enrolling in a trade school program would help you achieve your dream job.

Think about the considerations you made before enrolling in your trade school program. Then, answer what you consider most important and what fits your lifestyle.

This could include factors such as whether you have loved ones you need to spend time with in the evenings and whether you prefer to, later on, pursue a job that has a set schedule. 

What Do You Think Makes You Well-Suited For A Career In Your Chosen Field?

Asking yourself this good technical interview question would help you see whether you have the right knowledge and/or experience for the field you'll be pursuing.

To prepare for a question like this, you must perform a self-assessment. There are many self-evaluation tools and personality tests available online that can help you figure out your strengths and weaknesses.

You can also show what you can do by talking about relevant challenges or problems you've faced and how you solved them.

Try the Challenge, Action, Result (CAR) model. This is where you reflect on a challenge that you faced, the action you took, and what the result was.

This encourages you to think of all of your experiences, even those beyond a work setting. Then, you can express what you learned from these experiences and how it ties into the career of your chosen field.

For example, you won a trading competition in your first year by analyzing the software industry and longing for a stock that rose 20% and shorting another one that fell 15%.

Do They Provide Chances To Obtain Credits While Still In High School?

It's a challenge to manage between school and work.

Suppose you're still a high school student but are considering joining a trade school program while working after you graduate high school.

In that case, it's important to find out if the school you currently attend can provide transferable credits to the trade school of your choice.

This also applies vice versa. Trade schools can provide an opportunity to gain credits in various subjects, from business administration to marketing.

How Do You Think Trade School Will Help You Achieve Your Long-Term Career Goals?

With various options for studying nowadays, you would need to understand how your trade school can support your career aspirations.

Every school has unique aspects, whether in the programs they teach or the admission requirements. You would need to research sufficiently to pick the best one for you.

For example, there are trade schools, vocational schools, and community colleges. Trade schools are mostly affiliated with a specific career path.

If you want to be the Head of Engineering at a reputable, global construction company, find out how your trade school can improve your math, physics, and other technical skills.

Technology interview questions tend to revolve around questions like this. But first, you'd have to demonstrate how you could utilize technology or the knowledge obtained to support you in the long term.

What Are Some Of The Biggest Challenges You Anticipate Facing in Your Chosen Field?

You may face good technical interview questions like this one.

If an interviewer asks you this, they would like to know whether you have thought about how your weaknesses could cause you to struggle when pursuing your chosen field.

You'll need to justify why these are your biggest challenges. For example, suppose you've decided to become a wind turbine technician.

In that case, certain challenges you might face could be technical failures, safety measures you'd have to remember, or challenges that come with different kinds of wind turbines.

Consider why they're challenges. You may have trouble memorizing technical solutions or be unfamiliar with the latest wind turbines.

In short, technical skills interview questions require you to highlight practical, real-case issues and what you think you can do to mitigate or handle them.

How Did You Go About Researching Different Trade Programs Before Making Your Decision?

If an interviewer asks you this, they want to understand your approach in deciding which trade program to take. This is another type of technical skills interview question.

You'd have to determine how you'd structure your decision-making process in choosing a trade program.

Would you first approach people you trust and ask for their opinions? Or would you jump to the internet and start randomly searching? The possibilities are endless.

Consider why you took a particular research route. You may have used online searches because you don't know anyone who knows about trade schools, or you may have asked individuals first since you know people with trade school experience.

One way could be to look into the different requirements for getting into trade schools and then choose the ones you meet.

What Do You Think Sets Your Trade School Apart From Other Schools Offering Similar Programs?

This question confirms how carefully you researched your trade school.

A technology-focused interview question would ask how your trade school's tech courses vary from others and how they can assist you.

Your answer would have to demonstrate what aspects of the trade school stood out to you. For example, you may have found that your trade school costs much less than others but provides more relevant courses.

Also, consider which courses or syllabuses in your trade school program you found interesting and need to find in other schools that offer similar programs. This could be like PCI’s 40-week Wind Turbine Technician certificate program. 

What Are Your Long-term Career Goals, And How Do You Think Attending A Trade School Will Help You Achieve Them?

This is a very important interview question for an organization. There is a near-100% chance you will get this question in your admissions interview.

If you can answer this, you're serious about pursuing your studies and determined to apply what you've learned at trade school to your career.

Before attending trade school, examine your career goals. This could be a high level in a company, a traveling technician job, or something else.

From there, try thinking backward. This could start with identifying the skills or experience you'd have to gain to achieve your goal. For example, you need leadership skills to be a supervisor.

Then you can check if your trade school has a program to help you develop that skill.

Frequently Asked Questions:

What Is The Average Starting Salary For Students Who Graduated With An Associate Degree In Their Selected Trade?

At the time of reporting, approximately 6,700 were employed within one year of their graduation date, for a total of 84%.

The average annual pay for students who graduate with an associate degree is $45,614 annually in the United States. However, this can vary greatly by $19,000.

This is influenced by factors such as opportunities for advancement and increased salary range based on the fresh graduate's skills and experience.

How Much Does It Cost To Attend A Technical College Or Trade School?

The cost of tuition at a technical college or trade school depends on what program you choose and whether the school is public or private.

Trade schools can cost less than a technical college or university because they offer certificate programs that can be completed much faster.

Can I Get Financial Assistance To Help Pay For My Education?

Yes! Trade schools offer many options to help pay for training and scholarships to enable everyone the right to an education without being restricted by finances.

What Type Of Training Do You Offer At Your Trade School?

Trade schools offer hands-on training in specific trades, which includes boot camps and career services.

For instance, PCI has programs like boot camps where students can show what they know in the real world.

What Is Your Application Process Like?

You would need to fill out an application form, which you can find on our website.

Once the form has been submitted with the necessary supporting documents and payment of the application fee, you'll be contacted by a PCI representative once processing has been completed.

Apply To Career Training Today!

Using our structure and entry-level interview questions, you can assess if a trade school is right for you. So, if you're interested in applying to PCI, you can click here to visit our admissions page.