Job Training that Works

Project Quest has been helping San Antonio residents find good jobs for twenty-seven years. Studies have shown that Quest does a much better job than its peers. Quest graduates consistently earn $5,000 more annually, while earnings gains from training programs typically fade over time.

It doesn’t do the training itself. Instead, it places 300 to 400 students each year with local community colleges and other schools where participants can complete degrees in health care and nursing, information technology and other fields where salaries and demand is high but qualified candidates are few. 

Quest provides half the cost of tuition and also helps with rent and utilities when necessary. It provides transportation help like bus passes for students in need. Nearly half of Project Quest’s enrollees have children, so there’s financial assistance for child care as well. Quest spends about $11,000 per trainee, offering intensive coaching and financial help.

Participants are required to attend weekly V.I.P. (Vision, Initiative and Perseverance) sessions with Quest coaches, where they provide progress reports on classes and go over the ups and downs they experience. There are lessons in subjects like time management as well as advice on navigating coursework and college-level classes. The V.I.P. sessions also provide moments where students who are struggling can seek out support from their comrades and their coaches. 

Typical trainees spend 18 months in the program, and as graduation nears, they are walked through mock job interviews and learn how to prepare a résumé and pitch themselves to employers. The coaching continues after students finish the program and start new jobs.