The Hot New Gen-Z Trend Is Skipping College

On a recent Wednesday morning, about 20 students at Queens Technical High School marched into a supply closet and retrieved what looked, to an outsider, like silver suitcases. They sat back down at the classroom’s U-shaped table arrangement and opened what were in fact “advanced cable trainers,” kits containing the cables and wire cutters they’d be working with throughout their senior year. Meanwhile, their teacher, David Abreu, began to lecture them about what it’s like out “in industry”—the vocational school term for the proverbial “real world.” Read the full story on VICE.com.

SkillsUSA Week 2026 Highlights the Power of CTE, Student Advocacy in Addressing the National Workforce Shortage

SkillsUSA, the #1 workforce development organization for students, is proud to celebrate SkillsUSA Week 2026 from Feb. 2–6.

January 26, 2026

SkillsUSA Names Wisconsin Diesel Technician to 2026 WorldSkills USA Team

SkillsUSA has selected Benjamin Strupp, of Holmen, Wis., as the U.S.’s official competitor in Heavy Vehicle Technology for the 2026 WorldSkills Competition.

Search News Room:

Media Contacts

For more information about SkillsUSA, contact:

Clare Briner (Media Inquires)

Director, Marketing and Communications

703-737-0625

SkillsUSA Inc. is a national nonprofit and tax-exempt student organization under the Internal Revenue Service Code, Section (501)(c)(3).

SkillsUSA is committed to a learning and working environment free from all forms of discrimination. Learn more.

Customer Care
844-875-4557 | customercare@skillsusa.org

Mailing Address
673 Potomac Station Dr., PMB #809
Leesburg, VA 20176

The Hot New Gen-Z Trend Is Skipping College

Related Stories

SkillsUSA Week 2026 Highlights the Power of CTE, Student Advocacy in Addressing the National Workforce Shortage

SkillsUSA Names Wisconsin Diesel Technician to 2026 WorldSkills USA Team

Search News Room:

Media Contacts

Clare Briner (Media Inquires)

Mike Rowe for SkillsUSA

Kayleen McCabe PSA