Vocational schools take a variety of forms, including training programs offered by private commercial companies that train individuals for technical, trade or vocational careers. In addition, vocational schools can take the form of career-oriented training for a specific profession at a trade high school, an agricultural and vocational high school, through community colleges and even take the form of an on-the-job apprenticeship or internship program.
Because trade or vocational high schools have existed for a while, these are probably the only two categories of vocational school that qualify as traditional. Historically, community colleges offered programs of general studies comparable to the first two years of a four-year college rather than trade- or vocational-oriented curricula. The foray of community colleges into the vocational education field has created non-traditional curricula within community colleges.
Special populations, or students outside the traditional vocational school "norm," contribute to the nontraditional status of a particular vocational school or category of schools. For example, girls and women historically have encountered resistance within non-traditional vocational training institutions as described in the "Journal of Vocational and Technical Education" at the Virginia Tech website, although they have received acceptance in other vocational disciplines, such as medical assistance or certified nursing aide training. A vocational school that actively recruits girls or women to train in programs such as electrician; building construction; automobile mechanics; carpentry; or Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) training programs qualify as a nontraditional vocational school in reference to serving a traditionally underserved population or non-traditional student.
Another education element that can give a vocational school a non-traditional status is the use of advanced technologies for delivery of instructional materials. Online vocational training programs or programs that have moved from more traditional instruction methodologies to the use of advanced education methods such as simulator software also qualify as nontraditional vocational schools.
Some examples of schools offering nontraditional online training programs within a career include schools such as medical assisting programs at Keiser University and Penn State. Some initiatives in Illinois, YouthBuild! Peoria and the Illinois Laborers and Contractors Joint Apprenticeship and Training Program provide an example in the apprenticeship style of vocational education. The Illinois programs also have a stated focus of working toward preparing underserved populations, including women and minorities, for work in non-traditional fields like construction.