TCAT Upper Cumberland offering immediate enrollment opportunities for students to enter workforce training programs, streamlining access to skilled trades.
TCAT Upper Cumberland President Cliff Wightman said immediate enrollment is available for every program except Surgical Tech and Nursing, which utilize cohort enrollment. Wightman said the institution serves as a primary provider of workforce training for industry partners throughout the region.
“A walk-in can actually walk in the building, or phone call or email or whatever way they want to do it, and we can get them in as quick as they get their financial aid processed and they get their life ready to start school,” Wightman said. “So it works out pretty well. And we’ve always done that to just ensure that we keep a constant flow of students in the programs to provide for our industry partners.”
As a vocational school, Wightman said TCAT’s immediate enrollment allows students who may be working full-time jobs to easily and immediately access career-changing, technical courses.
“One of the misnomers with TCATs is that we have waitlists,” Wightman said. “We do have waitlists, but the waitlists are an ever-functioning document. So I’ll give you an example, if let’s say there were 20 people on a waitlist to start welding, which is a very popular program, our student services person works through that list, and if someone either has had an objective change, you know, or life happens, or what have you, that waitlist can diminish down from 10 people to the 11th person quickly.”
Wightman said the school aims to break down every possible barrier to entry, including assisting students with financial aid processing and scholarships through partners like WIOA.
Wightman said the student demographic is broad, ranging from recent high school graduates to retirees in their 60s looking to gain new skills. Wightman said the school also focuses on equity by encouraging students to enter trades where their gender may be underrepresented.
“If you’ve got an ability to do something, it doesn’t matter who you are or what you are,” Wightman said. “Skilled trades is very, very accepting of that, and we are as well.”
Wightman said the school accommodates working students by offering night programs, part-time options, and split-cast classes. Wightman said the open enrollment model has been a staple of the vocational education system in Tennessee for decades to prevent turning away potential students.
“You never want to create a barrier to turn a student away because if you ever create a barrier like that, the chances are you may never get them again to start down a different pathway to change their lives,” Wightman said.
Wightman said instructors manage the rolling entry of students by utilizing simulated training, individual instruction, and peer learning. Wightman said this “open enrollment, open exit” philosophy allows the school to provide a steady stream of talent to local employers who may be expanding or adding shifts.
“We’re in a great area here in the Upper Cumberland, I mean, it’s ever-growing,” Wightman said. “There’s constantly things moving in, there’s companies expanding, and that’s what we do, we try to do our best to meet that need.”
Wightman said most programs are skills-based and can be completed in eight months to a year. Wightman said the cost of education is affordable, noting that even the most expensive program, Diesel Technology, costs approximately $8,000 for the entire duration including tools.
“The equipment that we use while we’re training these students, you know, is second to none,” Wightman said. “I mean, it’s not, it’s not actual trainers, it’s things that’s out in the field.”
