Registered Teacher Apprenticeship Programs (RTAPs)

Product or Programme · All products and programmes
Evidence · 2 claims (2 for) · 1 study (1 qualitative), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study

Description

A U.S. Department of Labor- or state-registered earn-and-learn teacher-preparation programme in which paid apprentices complete mentored, job-embedded training, related classroom instruction, and competency-based requirements toward teacher licensure.

Components

• Registered Teacher Apprenticeship Programs (RTAPs) and the National Guidelines for Apprenticeship Standards: RTAPs are a form of registered apprenticeship recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor in which apprentices hold paid positions with progressively increasing wages, complete at least 2,000 hours of structured on-the-job training under an experienced mentor, receive supplemental classroom instruction, and earn a portable, nationally recognized credential. The Pathways Alliance's National Guidelines add teacher-specific elements: competency-based completion, at least one academic year of on-the-job learning with a mentor-teacher at a ratio not exceeding two apprentices per mentor, at least 144 hours of related technical instruction, and no service as teacher of record. The report describes RTAPs as an "earn and learn" model intended to make teaching more accessible and affordable and to attract a more diverse candidate pool. (Nathan Kriha et al. (2025))

Claims

• Mentorship was important to apprentices, but mentor quality and time with mentors varied across programs [+W]
• Mentors of color were especially valuable to apprentices of color, who wanted more intentional mentor matching [+W]

Related Products and Programmes

• Talent Together registered teacher apprenticeship
• Scaling Apprenticeship and Closing the Skills Gap

Key Sources

• Nathan Kriha, Diarese George, Jonathan Feinstein, and Anna Skubel. (2025). Building Futures: Strengthening the Educator Workforce Through Teacher Apprenticeships. EdTrust. https://edtrust.org

Page metadata

Field	Value
type	product
id	registered-teacher-apprenticeship-programs-rtaps
title	Registered Teacher Apprenticeship Programs (RTAPs)
description	A U.S.
status	review
product_kind	programme
generated	by process:settle-candidates on 2026-10-10
trust	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content

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