Harrison College To Offer 12-Month Apprenticeship Program

INDIANAPOLIS, IN, May 25, 2013 (Press-News.org) Harrison College (http://www.harrison.edu/), an institution of higher learning with more than 5,000 students studying at 13 campuses and online, has announced that it has launched a comprehensive 12-month apprenticeship program. Created to bring new talent into the Information Technology workforce, the apprenticeship program addresses the application developer needs and the IT job market demands. Often referred to as a "grow your own talent" initiative, this program is a paid apprenticeship which is ideal for students interested in pursuing a career as an application developer.

The demand for IT professionals is clear and the IT field is projected to remain one of the country's fastest-growing career fields. Harrison College's apprenticeship program is specially designed and career-focused to help students become an integral part of the expanding IT field. Beginning with a heavy interview and screening process, the apprenticeship program matches each student with a paid software developer position in a company that best suits the student's needs, intended career path and interests.

Designed using a 12-month model, the program is segmented into four distinct quarters. In the first quarter, enrolled students will take three college-level introductory program courses. In the second quarter, students will take three new classes in addition to starting the apprenticeship portion of the program model. Working 20 hours a week at the apprenticeship site, students will spend this quarter observing the processes of their matched company and gain first-hand experience seeing how the company does business. During the third quarter of the program, students will work at their matched apprenticeship site for a paid 30 hours per week and begin to gain actual coding experience in addition to taking another three IT developer courses with Harrison College. In the program's final quarter, students will spend a paid 40 hours per week at their apprenticeship site and complete their final three courses including a human interface design class. At the completion of the apprenticeship program, enrolled students will have earned approximately $12,000, have had nine months of hands-on programming experience and have completed 12 college-level IT courses at Harrison College, preparing them to enter the workforce as a junior level programmer.

Joe Meadors, national dean of Harrison College's School of Information Technology, recently recorded a podcast discussing the college's apprenticeship program, providing listeners with program details and touting the benefits of this model for prospective students and employers. The podcast is available to download at http://bit.ly/12xHGO5.

QUOTES:
"Presently, there are more than 4 million IT professionals working in the United States and that number is expected to grow by more than 20 percent through 2020," said Neil Stanley, regional president of corporate partnerships at Harrison College. "With the launch of our one-of-a-kind apprenticeship program, aspiring IT programmers and developers have access to an advanced educational experience that will fully prepare them for a career in one of the fastest-growing industries in the United States."

"When a person presents themselves to an employer, the employer is specifically looking for an educational background and hands-on, industry experience that aligns with their organization," said Joe Meadors, national dean of Harrison College's School of Information Technology. "The apprenticeship program brings these two elements together and gives enrolled students a resume that includes credited college coursework and real industry experience that employers are looking for."

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ABOUT HARRISON COLLEGE:
Harrison College is a contemporary, career-focused institution of higher education serving more than 5,000 students throughout the United States and Internationally. Harrison College has 11 campuses in Indiana and Ohio, two culinary schools in Indiana and North Carolina, and also offers courses online. The institution grants associate and bachelor's degrees across five schools of study: business, health sciences, information technology, criminal justice, and veterinary technology, as well as its culinary division, The Chef's Academy. Harrison College offers students a variety of learning environments including online, traditional classroom, or a combination of both. Harrison College's Corporate Partnership program, which partners with businesses and organizations to develop and teach a customized curriculum across a variety of disciplines, has the ability to go on-site at a company or organization's facility or facilities to assist in education in the fields of health sciences, culinary, leadership certification, IT certification preparation and health informatics. Harrison College is accredited by the Accrediting Council of Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS) and is dedicated to excellence in higher learning. In addition, the college is currently a Candidate with The Higher Learning Commission and an affiliate of the North Central Association (HLC-NCA). Harrison College was founded in 1902 as Indiana Business College.

Kathleen Donnelly
MMI Public Relations
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