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Nontraditional Careers by Engineer Inclusion
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What is a nontraditional career? ​

A nontraditional career refers to occupations or fields of work for which individuals from one gender comprise less than 25% of the individuals employed in each occupation or field of work. Provided are examples of nontraditional careers within Career and Technical Education, however, the lists are not comprehensive.

  1. Aerospace Engineering
  2. Agricultural Sciences and Management
  3. Architecture
  4. Auto Mechanic
  5. Automotive Design and Engineering
  6. Biomedical Engineering
  7. Boilermaking
  8. Carpentry
  9. Chemical Engineering
  10. Civil Engineering
  11. Commercial Diving
  12. Computer Network Architecture
  13. Computer Science
  14. Construction
  15. Construction and Building Inspection
  16. Data Science and Big Data Analytics
  17. Diesel Mechanic
  18. Electrical Engineering
  19. Electrician
  20. Electronics Engineering
  21. Environmental Engineering
  22. Fire Management
  23. Forestry and Wildlife Management
  24. Geoscience and Hydrology
  25. Heavy Equipment Operation
  26. HVAC
  27. Industrial Engineering
  28. Industrial Machinery Maintenance
  29. Information Security Analysis
  30. Landscape Architecture
  31. Law Enforcement
  32. Marine Biology and Oceanography
  33. Materials Science Engineering
  34. Mechanical Engineering
  35. Metallurgy
  36. Mining
  37. Nuclear Engineering
  38. Petroleum Engineering
  39. Physical Sciences (e.g., Physics, Chemistry)
  40. Pilot (Commercial and Military)
  41. Plumbing
  42. Railroad Operations and Management
  43. Renewable Energy Technology
  44. Robotics Technician
  45. Software Development
  46. Software Engineering
  47. Structural Engineering
  48. Systems Engineering
  49. Telecommunications
  50. Urban Planning and Development
  51. Video Game Design and Development
  52. Welding
  53. Zoology and Wildlife Conservation
  1. Administrative Professional
  2. Advanced Nursing Practices (e.g., Nurse Anesthetists)
  3. Beauty Therapy and Aesthetics
  4. Child Care Services
  5. Child and Family Social Work
  6. Cosmetic Surgery Nursing
  7. Cosmetology
  8. Culinary Arts
  9. Dance and Performing Arts
  10. Dental Assisting
  11. Dental Hygienist
  12. Dietetics
  13. Early Childhood Education
  14. Early Childhood Special Education
  15. Elementary Education
  16. Fashion Design
  17. Floral Design
  18. Geriatric Healthcare and Nursing
  19. Health Information Technology
  20. Home Economics and Family Studies
  21. Human Resources Management
  22. Interior Design
  23. Lactation Consultancy
  24. Library Science
  25. Massage Therapy
  26. Medical Assisting
  27. Medical Office Specialist
  28. Midwifery
  29. Nursing
  30. Nutrition and Dietetics
  31. Occupational Therapy
  32. Office Management
  33. Paralegal Studies
  34. Pediatric Nursing
  35. Physical Therapy
  36. Preschool Education
  37. Primary School Teaching
  38. Professional Caregiving
  39. Psychiatric Nursing
  40. Public Relations
  41. Radiologic Technology
  42. Rehabilitation Counseling
  43. Secretarial and Administrative Support
  44. Social Work
  45. Special Education Teaching
  46. Speech-Language Pathology
  47. Speech Therapy
  48. Textile Design
  49. Veterinary Nursing
  50. Veterinary Technology
  51. Wedding Planning and Coordination
  52. Yoga and Fitness Training
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A nontraditional career is a U.S. federal distinction guided primarily by the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006. Educational institutions may receive Perkins funding for Career and Technical Education (CTE), and they must use a portion of the funds to meet accountability measures aimed at closing the participation, concentrator, and completion gaps.

Engineer Inclusion partners with educational institutions to build capacity for your comprehensive local needs analysis. Contact us and let’s brainstorm a solution to best meet your goals and budget.

There are numerous root causes for why people don’t pursue and persist in nontraditional pathways. One of the root causes is a lack of role models. This is related to self-efficacy, the belief one has in their ability to complete a task. One of the sources of self-efficacy is vicarious experiences, or the observation of models. Seeing someone perform a task or meeting someone who looks like them who’s in a career or pathway can over time increase someone’s belief they can do a task, and increase sense of belonging.

Among many things, it is important to do an environmental scan to ensure the posters on your campus do not reinforce stereotypes. Since it is challenging to find posters that do that, we’ve prepared a set of posters for you to download and customize! Or, you can use our easy-to-use customizer and order poster prints.

design your own nontraditional career poster

Design Your Own Nontraditional Career Poster

Start with a photo of a person nontraditional to the career, add your program information, school logo, and any other details. We offer a variety of sizes, too.

Download Free Nontraditional CTE Posters

Share with us some info, and we’ll share with you a collection of posters. After you hit send, check your email for a link to download the file.

By accessing this free resource, you agree to be added to our mailing list. Your information is safe, and you can unsubscribe at any time. Thank you!  

Nontraditional Career Resources

By Meagan Pollock, PhD

Curated by Enginer Inclusion

By the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity

By Perkins Collaborative Resource Network

By Summer Fellows with the U.S. Department of Education

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