Applicant Outreach: Pioneering Recruiting Practices During the Pandemic

Three months ago, the ICATT and MAT² calendars were full of planned career fairs, high school presentations and company open houses, all designed to recruit applicants for these apprenticeship programs. When these were cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the ICATT and MAT² Applicant Outreach teams had to innovate quickly.

Many ICATT and MAT² Network Companies remain open and operational with plans to hire apprentices for the Summer 2020 cohort, and some have even increased the number of open positions. Our team adapted their recruiting efforts quickly to the new situation, offering a range of virtual info sessions and resource hubs for applicants, educators and parents.

Offering live events online, like our Virtual Info Sessions have helped promote these programs and drive new applications to MAT² and ICATT Apprenticeship Programs. The ICATT Applicant Outreach team thus began hosting Virtual Open Houses: A format where Network Colleges and Companies present themselves directly to local apprentice candidates and facilitate contact with them.

Another way to engage prospective apprentices is through virtual resources hubs hosted on the ICATT and MAT² websites where visitors can find content to view on their own time like an on-demand presentation about each program, short videos of current apprentices, Covid-19 specific FAQs and tips on virtual interviewing.

With these efforts, the Applicant Outreach Teams have reached over 200 prospects and educators during the live sessions and ensure a steady flow of applications to cater our Network Companies with qualified candidates. Of course, nothing beats meeting face-to-face, but responding to the pandemic has helped broaden the ways ICATT and MAT² share the benefits of high-tech apprenticeships in the US.