How To Change Careers With No Experience Through Training and Transferable Skills

One direct way to change careers with no experience is to get hired into a job that trains you. A Registered Apprenticeship pays a competitive wage from day one while you learn, and the average starting salary after an apprentice completes a program is $86K on the Apprenticeship.gov homepage, based on CRIS and RAPIDS data retrieved on 12/31/2025.

If the only thing missing is experience in the new field, the gap is training, and programs run through the U.S. Department of Labor and its CareerOneStop training funds page exist to help pay for it. For Metaintro readers, this guide maps each paid or funded route, who it is for and what it asks of you.

Which of Your Existing Skills Count as Experience in a New Field?

Job changes are common over a working life. Workers born from 1957 to 1964 held an average of 12.9 jobs from ages 18 to 58 in a long-running survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and that same group still held an average of 2.2 jobs from ages 45 to 54. Each move carries skills with it, and more of them count than you might think. In electrical work, for example, many technical schools teach circuitry, safety practices and basic electrical information, and graduates of these programs usually receive credit toward their apprenticeship. Most workers enter apprenticeships directly, but some electricians enter apprenticeship programs after working as a helper.

The lesson for any career changer is to sort your past work by task, not by job title. Someone who handled customer complaints has handled conflict, records and deadlines. Someone who ran a stockroom has handled inventory, safety checks and scheduling. Write each task down next to the duty it matches in the new role, then name the training that would close what is left.

Workers who gained electrical experience in the military or in the construction industry may qualify for a shortened apprenticeship based on their experience and testing, according to the BLS electricians handbook page.

How Does a Registered Apprenticeship Let You Earn While You Learn?

A Registered Apprenticeship is a job first. Registered apprentices can obtain paid work experience with a mentor, progressive wage increases, classroom instruction and a portable, nationally recognized credential. You earn as you learn with a guaranteed wage increase as you develop new skills.

The learning comes in two parts. Apprentices gain knowledge from on-the-job learning and job-related classroom training, and they finish with an industry-recognized and nationally-portable credential that travels with them to the next employer.

The system is large. There are 800,000+ apprentices annually across the nation, and 93% of apprentices retain employment after apprenticeship completion, based on CRIS and RAPIDS data retrieved on 12/31/2025. Apprentice graduates have a lifetime earning advantage of $300K+, as they earn more over their lifetime compared to peers who don't, drawn from a 2012 Mathematica Policy Research study of Registered Apprenticeship in 10 states.

For a career changer, the point is cash flow. You earn a wage while you study, so you are not living on savings. You are an employee, so the wage starts with the job and rises as your skills do.

How Do You Find and Apply for an Apprenticeship With No Experience?

You apply to the employer, not to the government. Apprenticeship opportunities are offered through an employer or the program sponsor, and the route is to search the Apprenticeship Job Finder and apply directly with the employer or the program sponsor. Questions about a specific opening go to that employer or sponsor.

If you need more help, go in person. An American Job Center can help you obtain an apprenticeship, and the same centers help businesses find qualified workers.

If you are not ready for a full program, a pre-apprenticeship is the step before it. A pre-apprenticeship is designed to prepare individuals to enter and succeed in a Registered Apprenticeship Program. A quality pre-apprenticeship includes training based on industry standards and approved by a Registered Apprenticeship partner, hands-on training or volunteer work that does not displace paid employees, and agreements with sponsors that let participants enter directly into a program.

Support is part of the design too. Quality programs offer wrap-around services or referrals such as childcare and transportation, and many are housed at high schools and community colleges. The Apprenticeship.gov Partner Finder shows sponsors that may offer a pre-apprenticeship program.

What Do Electricians Earn After an Apprenticeship?

Electrical work is a clear example of an apprenticeship career, because most electricians learn through an apprenticeship. The median annual wage for electricians was $63,190 in May 2025, with the lowest 10 percent earning less than $42,640 and the highest 10 percent more than $108,510.

Trainees start lower and climb. Apprentices receive less pay than fully trained electricians, but their pay increases as they learn to do more. For each year of the program, apprentices typically receive 2,000 hours of paid on-the-job training plus technical instruction in electrical theory, blueprint reading, mathematics, electrical code requirements, and safety and first-aid practices.

Who runs the program matters. Unions and contractor associations sponsor apprenticeship programs, and requirements vary by state and locality. After finishing, electricians are journey workers who may work on their own, subject to local or state licensing, and most states require electricians to be licensed.

Employment of electricians is projected to grow 9 percent from 2025 to 2035, much faster than the average for all occupations, and about 72,700 openings for electricians are projected each year. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force. Licensing and apprenticeship steps for the trade are laid out in How to Become an Electrician and What the Apprenticeship Involves.

Can WIOA Pay for Your Training if You Were Laid Off or Earn a Low Income?

It can, if you qualify. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, or WIOA, gives people with employment barriers the chance to learn new skills and get job search help, with training in many high-demand fields through local colleges and other training providers. WIOA assistance may be considered based on different barriers to employment, and you may qualify if you:

• have been laid off and are unlikely to find a job in your former industry or occupation
• have a low income and/or have a family member who is eligible for or receives public assistance such as TANF, SNAP or SSI
• have been dependent on the income of another family member but are no longer supported by that income
• are the spouse of a member of the Armed Forces who lost employment due to a permanent change in duty station or is underemployed
• are justice-involved or have a criminal record
• are an English language learner, or struggle with reading or writing
• are disabled and require additional assistance to complete an educational program to secure and maintain employment
• are pregnant or parenting and under 24 years old
• are or have been a foster child, aged out of foster care, runaway, or homeless
• have been self-employed and are now unemployed because of economic conditions or a natural disaster

Funding has a pecking order. When American Job Center staff use WIOA Adult funds for individualized career services and training, they must give priority to recipients of public assistance, other low-income individuals, and individuals who are basic skills deficient, and veterans receive priority of service in all DOL-funded employment programs.

Laid-off workers have a separate track. The Dislocated Worker program is designed to help workers get back to work as quickly as possible after job loss, mass layoffs, global trade dynamics or transitions in economic sectors. Services are designed to meet local needs and may vary from state to state.

Once eligible, you pick the course. Each state keeps a directory of WIOA-eligible training programs on CareerOneStop, and the Local Training Finder flags which programs are approved for WIOA funding.

Which Free Training Programs Are Built for Specific Groups?

Several federal routes are aimed at one group, so check whether you fit one before paying for anything. Most states offer job training programs, searchable through your state labor department website.

Young adults have several options. Job Corps is a free program for young adults between the ages of 16 and 24 who earn a low income, built to develop academic and trade skills. Job Corps and YouthBuild are both federal pre-apprenticeship programs, which can help you prepare for an apprenticeship. GetMyFuture's tools require you to be between the ages of 14 and 24.

Other groups have their own doors. The Senior Community Service Employment Program offers job training through community service for older workers. Some TANF programs also offer job training on top of food and housing help, and your local TANF office can say whether you are eligible. People who receive SNAP food benefits may also qualify for a SNAP Employment and Training program to build career skills.

Veterans can tap education benefits. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs administers several education benefit programs, and many veterans can qualify for more than one. The program you pick also needs to be an eligible one, which the VA-approved program search listed on the CareerOneStop training funds page can confirm.

Can You Change Careers Through Your Existing Employer?

Often, yes, and it can let you keep your paycheck while you switch. Over a third of HR professionals (41%) train existing employees for hard-to-fill roles, based on data from 2,000+ HR professionals in the SHRM 2026 Talent Trends report.

Employers have reasons to say yes. Nearly 70% of HR professionals still face challenges recruiting for full-time positions, and in the past 12 months 42% reported difficulty retaining full-time employees. Organizations also fill jobs by training existing workers and relying on apprenticeship, internship and mentoring programs.

That gives you a concrete ask. Pick a hard-to-fill role inside your company, list the tasks you already do that overlap with it, and propose a short stretch assignment or a spot in an internal training or mentoring program. You can keep your salary, benefits and track record while you build the new experience.

Employers that broaden access to talent, invest in continuous skills development, and integrate technology into thoughtful talent systems will be better equipped to navigate ongoing disruption, according to the SHRM 2026 Talent Trends page.

Can an IT Certification Stand In for a Degree When You Switch Fields?

In computer support, it can. Network support specialists typically need an associate's degree and user support specialists typically need some college courses, but candidates for either type of position may qualify with a high school diploma plus relevant information technology (IT) certifications. The median annual wage for computer user support specialists was $61,860 in May 2025.

Go in with clear eyes on demand. Overall employment of computer support specialists is projected to decline 3 percent from 2025 to 2035, and user support jobs are expected to shrink as organizations continue to implement automated tools such as chatbots for troubleshooting. Even so, about 48,700 openings for computer support specialists are projected each year, all of them expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to other occupations or exit the labor force.

The certification has to match the employer. Companies may require their computer support specialists to hold certifications in the products the companies use, so read target job ads first and pick the credential they name. If you qualify for WIOA, check whether a local certification course is on your state's approved list before paying for it yourself.

How Do Apprenticeships Work for Career Changers in England?

England runs a separate system, and its age rule is a minimum, not a cap. To start one, under GOV.UK apprenticeship guidance, you need to be 16 or over, living in England and not in full-time education. As an apprentice you work alongside experienced staff as an employee earning a wage and getting holiday pay, with at least 20% of your normal working hours spent on training.

Pay depends on age and year. For apprentices aged 16 to 18, and for those aged 19 or over in their first year, the current National Minimum Wage rate for an apprentice is £8 per hour (about $10.70). Once you are 19 or over and have completed your first year, you are entitled to the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage rate for your age. Apprentices also get at least 20 days paid holiday per year, plus bank holidays.

What This Means for Career Changers, and What Should You Do Next?

Stop treating no experience as the problem. The real problem is unpaid training, and the routes above solve it in different ways. An apprenticeship pays you to learn, WIOA may pay for the course if you qualify through a barrier to work, the group programs cover young adults, older workers, veterans and benefit recipients, and an internal move can let you learn while still employed.

Pick the route that fits your finances first, then the field. If you cannot go without a paycheck, ignore programs that need full-time study and look only at apprenticeships and internal moves. If you were laid off, visit an American Job Center before you sign up for any paid course, because eligibility for WIOA can change what you pay. If you are past your first career, the same order applies to a career change in your 30s, 40s, or 50s.

Lacey Kaelani, Metaintro's CEO, puts it this way: A career change rarely starts with a new degree. It starts with finding the employer who will pay you while you learn the job.

Your next step this week is to search the Apprenticeship Job Finder for one field you named in your skills list and apply to the first opening that matches.

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• IT Job Titles Explained, From Help Desk to Chief Information Officer
• How to Become an Electrician's Assistant
• Elevator Technician Careers and How the Apprenticeship Pays Six Figures
• How to Choose a Career Field, and Why Employment Growth Makes Switching Easier Now

People Also Asked

Q: How long does an apprenticeship take?

A: It depends on the trade and the country. Most electricians learn their trade in a 4- or 5-year apprenticeship program in the US, while apprenticeships in England can take from 8 months to 6 years to complete, depending on the type and level.

Q: Who qualifies for WIOA-paid training?

A: People with barriers to employment, such as people who were laid off and are unlikely to find work in their former occupation, people on a low income, English language learners and people with a criminal record, among other groups on the CareerOneStop training funds page. Your local American Job Center can tell you whether you qualify.

Q: Can your current employer retrain you for a new role?

A: Some do. Organizations fill jobs by training existing workers, among other strategies, so asking for a stretch assignment or a place in an internal program is a reasonable first move.

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