Opinion

ACTING LABOR SECRETARY SONDERLING: A fast-track way to get a job without college debt

Registered apprenticeships offer 42 million student loan borrowers an earn-while-you-learn path to $86K starting salaries

By Keith Sonderling Fox News

Published May 1, 2026 5:00am EDT

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Hollywood actor Patrick Ball recently made headlines for calling his $80,000 in student loan debt a "huge burden." In an interview with Cultured magazine, Ball said he believes he would have died in debt if not for landing a starring role in the award-winning drama "The Pitt."

Ball lucked out, but for most Americans, there’s no such happy ending. More than 42 million Americans have student loans, bringing the total outstanding federal-student-loan debt to over $1.6 trillion. The average borrower has an outstanding balance of around $40,000.

Pursuing a college degree makes sense for many individuals, but it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. Too many students graduate to discover a drought of job prospects in their field while simultaneously struggling to afford student-loan payments. Even if they manage to land a job, the average annual salary of a recent college graduate is barely enough to sustain one person, let alone a family. The result is paralyzing debt and a stalled future.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Under President Donald Trump’s leadership, the Department of Labor (DOL) is working hard to create alternative pathways for........

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