HOW TO USE THE PANHANDLE CAREER HANDBOOK

The Panhandle Career Handbook is now available electronically at http://wspanhandle.com. Although information about one or all the occupations may be printed, the entire Handbook is no longer published as a printed book.

We encourage broad distribution of the information contained in the Handbook. You may print and distribute the contents freely, although we request that the source be credited to the Panhandle Regional Planning Commission.

The handbook is divided into three parts. The first section includes the introduction, this guide and the table of contents.

The second section includes information on 41 occupations identified by the Panhandle Workforce Development Board as offering the best potential for employment, good wages and fringe benefits, and career advancement. Included are detailed descriptions of these occupations, associated local public training options, related labor market data and sources of additional information.

The process of choosing these occupations includes an annual review of the most current labor market data available. The Panhandle Workforce Development Board's Labor Market Information Committee selects industries in the region with significant projected expansion, and then identifies the occupations within those industries that meet locally established wage, training and growth expectations. Employers, economic development representatives, school personnel, elected officials and the public are invited to join Committee members to validate the need for the skills associated with each of the industries.

“Direct” training options are those considered by Panhandle employers to prepare students for entry or higher employment level in the occupation. Those that businesses report are not sufficient to prepare fully to enter the occupation are designated as “related.”

The third section is a resource directory. This section provides additional information, including a directory of additional training providers, the region’s seven Texas Workforce Centers, and an extensive list of websites.

Occupations change as businesses and technology change, which may affect job titles, tasks, equipment or technologies used to perform the work. Supplemental information about the occupations may also change. Therefore, this Handbook will be revised frequently to incorporate such changes. A table listing revisions by date may be found at the end of the Resource Directory section of the Handbook.