Who Is Participating in Alabama’s Nursing Registered Apprenticeship?

Program Context

From Pilot to Scale

Alabama’s Nursing Registered Apprenticeship Program launched in May 2022 with 20 apprentices. By April 2025, the study cohort included 1,038 apprentices across 21 participating higher education institutions and a statewide network of more than 70 healthcare employers. Growth therefore extended across the education and healthcare systems supporting apprenticeship, not enrollment alone.

Scale Beyond Enrollment

21

Participating Higher Education Institutions

70+

Healthcare Employers in the Statewide Network

Scaling Also Raises a Capacity Question

Growth in apprenticeship participation depends on more than employer demand and student interest. Nursing programs must also have sufficient instructional and clinical capacity to support additional students.

Early institutional feedback from one original pilot institution suggests that apprenticeship may help programs accommodate more students within existing instructional resources.

The January 2027 higher education brief will examine whether similar patterns are emerging across participating institutions.

Growth of Alabama's Nursing Registered Apprenticeship Program from 20 apprentices in May 2022 to 1,038 apprentices in April 2025.

Race, Ethnicity, and Gender

Participation Patterns Differ Across Pathways

The demographic profile of Alabama’s nursing apprenticeship is not uniform across pathways. Racial composition differs substantially between the RN and LPN pathways, while gender composition remains comparatively similar.

The Overall Profile Masks a Major Pathway Difference

White apprentices make up the largest share of RN participation, while Black or African American apprentices make up the largest share of LPN participation.

Race and Ethnicity

Compare participation patterns across Alabama’s RN and LPN apprenticeship pathways.

Explore Race and Ethnicity Patterns

View the interactive visualization on Tableau Public to compare race and ethnicity patterns across the RN and LPN pathways.

Explore Interactive Visualization

Race and Ethnicity Profile by Pathway

RN Pathway

873 apprentices

White

72.6%

Black or African American

17.8%

LPN Pathway

165 apprentices

White

29.7%

Black or African American

64.2%

The pathway comparison highlights the two largest racial groups. Additional race and ethnicity categories are shown in the full distribution above.

National Nursing Education Context

Black or African American apprentices represent 17.8% of Alabama’s RN apprenticeship pathway. For context, Black students represented 14.6% of enrollment in basic RN programs nationally in 2022 and 14.2% in 2023.

The national figures are provided as a nursing education benchmark rather than a direct comparison group. They represent a different population and geographic base, but they provide useful context for considering the level of Black participation in the apprenticeship pathway.

Source: National League for Nursing Annual Survey of Schools of Nursing

Representation May Also Matter for Patient Care

Building a nursing workforce that more closely reflects the communities it serves may have implications beyond workforce supply. Greater representation can bring a broader range of experiences and perspectives into clinical settings and may strengthen understanding of and responsiveness to the communities health systems serve.

Recent national hospital research found that Black nurses were underrepresented relative to Black patients across 574 hospitals, with the largest gap in hospitals serving larger Black patient populations. The current apprenticeship study does not examine patient outcomes, but the level of Black participation raises an important question about whether workforce pathways that broaden representation can also contribute to a nursing workforce better positioned to serve diverse communities.

Patient care context: National hospital nursing workforce study

Gender and Labor Supply

Nursing apprenticeship remains predominantly female, mirroring a longstanding pattern in the national nursing workforce.

87.2%

Female

9.1%

Male

3.8%

Not Reported or Other

At a time of sustained demand for nurses, lower participation among men may represent an underutilized source of potential labor supply. The current data do not identify why men participate at lower rates, but the pattern raises an important workforce development question about whether apprenticeship can help nursing draw from a broader population of potential workers.

For context, AACN reports that men represented 10.4% of the national RN workforce in 2024. American Association of Colleges of Nursing, Nursing Workforce Fact Sheet

The Workforce Representation Takeaway

The apprenticeship model is engaging racially different participant populations across nursing pathways while remaining predominantly female. For workforce planning, representation should be considered alongside scale: expanding the number of nurses and broadening who is connected to nursing education and employment are related, but distinct, workforce goals.

The People Behind the Numbers

Multiple Points of Entry Into the Nursing Labor Market

Alabama’s nursing apprenticeship is reaching people at very different stages of their education and working lives. Participation includes young adults moving into nursing education soon after completing high school as well as adults entering the pathway later in adulthood.

How to Read These Patterns

These are descriptive patterns based on age at apprenticeship entry. They show when participants entered the apprenticeship pathway, but they do not identify prior occupations, explain why participants entered nursing, or establish whether an individual was beginning a career, changing careers, or advancing within an existing one.

73

Apprentices entered at ages 18 and 19

Early Progression Into Nursing

The apprentices who entered the apprenticeship at ages 18 and 19 had already met the admission requirements for their nursing programs, including completion of the required general education coursework. Reaching this point at such a young age suggests that some students may have completed required classes through dual enrollment or other advanced coursework while still in high school. The available data do not identify the specific educational route taken by each apprentice.

Participation Pattern 01

Earlier Entry Into Nursing

46.8%

of all apprentices were ages 18 to 24

51.3%

of RN apprentices were ages 18 to 24

Younger apprentices represent a substantial share of participation, particularly in the RN pathway. For the youngest participants, apprenticeship follows completion of the general education coursework required for nursing program admission. This creates the potential for a more continuous movement from secondary education into higher education, paid employment, and occupational skill development.

Participation Pattern 02

Adult Entry and Workforce Mobility

53.2%

of all apprentices were age 25 or older

77%

of LPN apprentices were age 25 or older

Adults age 25 and older account for 53.2% of all apprentices, and the age distribution extends into the 50s and beyond. This broad range shows that apprenticeship is reaching adults well beyond the traditional college age years. For some workers, registered apprenticeship may provide a structured route to develop new skills, earn a nursing credential, or move into a different or higher wage role. The age data do not identify prior occupations or whether individual apprentices were entering, returning to, or advancing within healthcare.

Expanding the Potential Nursing Labor Supply

Participation across a broad age range shows that nursing apprenticeship is drawing from more than one segment of the potential labor supply.

The model can support earlier entry into nursing for younger participants while also providing adults with a structured route to enter, return to, or advance within nursing occupations. For workforce planning, this broadens the pool of workers who can potentially contribute to nursing supply rather than relying primarily on traditional college age entrants.

Why It Matters

Labor Market Implications of Who Participates

These demographic patterns matter because nursing labor supply is shaped not only by how many people are trained, but also by who can enter the occupation, when they enter, and which pathways connect them to employment. Alabama’s nursing apprenticeship is engaging participants across different age groups and demographic populations, creating multiple potential sources of nursing labor.

1

Earlier Entry Can Strengthen the Connection Between Education and Employment

Apprentices who entered at ages 18 and 19 had already completed the general education coursework required for nursing program admission. A more direct transition into nursing education and paid employment can reduce gaps between education and labor market entry while allowing participants to begin accumulating occupational experience and earnings earlier. Over time, earlier entry may also increase cumulative earnings and years of nursing work experience.

2

Adult Entry Broadens the Potential Labor Supply

More than half of apprentices entered at age 25 or older, with participation extending into the 50s and beyond. This shows that nursing apprenticeship can draw potential workers from beyond the traditional college age population. For adults already participating in the labor market, apprenticeship may provide a structured route to develop new skills, earn a nursing credential, or move into a higher wage occupation. For employers, this expands the potential recruitment pool beyond new labor market entrants.

3

Different Pathways Reach Different Segments of the Labor Pool

The RN and LPN pathways have substantially different racial compositions, showing that the two pathways are reaching different participant populations. From a labor market perspective, this matters because expanding nursing supply may depend on multiple education and occupational routes that connect different groups of potential workers to nursing employment. Broader representation may also contribute to a nursing workforce that more closely reflects and understands the communities it serves.

4

Lower Male Participation Signals Additional Labor Supply Potential

Men account for 9.1% of apprentices, indicating that they remain comparatively underrepresented in the nursing apprenticeship population. In a labor market with sustained demand for nurses, increasing participation among groups that remain underrepresented could broaden the recruitment base. The current data do not identify why participation differs by gender, but they establish an important workforce development question for future study.

The Broader Labor Market Lens

Meeting nursing demand requires more than training more people. It also requires pathways that connect a broader pool of potential workers to nursing education and employment.

The age findings show participation among both younger and older adults. The RN and LPN pathways are reaching demographically different populations, while comparatively low male participation points to another potential source of nursing labor.

These patterns show why workforce planning must consider both how many people enter nursing and who is connected to a pathway into the profession.

Frequently Asked Questions

Understanding What These Findings Can and Cannot Tell Us

These findings establish a demographic baseline for registered apprentices who participated in Alabama’s nursing apprenticeship during the study period. The questions below clarify several important boundaries of the analysis.

Do these findings describe applicants or registered apprentices?

The findings describe registered apprentices included in the study cohort. They do not represent everyone who considered nursing, applied to a nursing program, applied for an apprenticeship opportunity, or was eligible to participate.

What can these findings tell us about access?

Participation patterns can show which populations are represented among registered apprentices, but participation is not the same as access. The data do not identify everyone who wanted to participate, whether apprenticeship opportunities were equally available across communities, or whether individuals encountered barriers before entering the program.

Do differences in representation tell us why people entered apprenticeship?

No. The administrative data show who participated and how participation differed across demographic groups and pathways. They do not establish whether those patterns resulted from recruitment, individual choice, program availability, institutional practices, prior educational experiences, or other factors.

Next in the Research Series

Who Stays?

Understanding Retention in Alabama’s Nursing Registered Apprenticeship

Coming November 10, 2026

The next analysis moves from who participates to who remains in the program. It examines the characteristics of apprentices who are retained and identifies patterns associated with continued participation, providing a clearer picture of persistence across Alabama’s nursing registered apprenticeship.

Preview artwork for the upcoming retention analysis in the Alabama nursing registered apprenticeship research series.

Explore the Full Research

Continue Exploring Alabama’s Nursing Registered Apprenticeship

Download the demographic brief for additional findings, supporting evidence, references, and policy context, or explore the broader nursing registered apprenticeship research series.

Download the Research Brief Explore the Research Series