Secondary or postsecondary education programs available in regular or trade high schools or through separate vocational centers or programs that provide formal preparation for semiskilled, skilled, technical or professional occupations for high-school-aged students and, in some cases, adults who have opted to develop or expand their employment opportunities, often in lieu of preparing for college entry. Vocational education programs help participants prepare for full-time employment upon graduation, part-time employment while in school or for more advanced vocational training at the postsecondary level.

Programs that offer apprenticeships, training through business practice firms, classroom training, internships, on-the-job training, work experience or other formats for training that prepares people for specific types of employment. The training may feature formal instruction in an institutional classroom setting, hands-on experience at a job site under varying arrangements or a combination of the two as the means by which trainees acquire the skills required to perform the job.

Programs that offer employment related training courses, generally in a traditional classroom setting, which provide participants with the technical skills and information they need to perform a particular job or group of jobs. The training has a structured, defined curriculum and may feature lectures, demonstrations, simulations, role-playing, self-study and other similar activities. Classroom style training is also the primary format used for training in the "soft skills" that are required to get a job, stay employed and advance.

Individuals who are generally between the ages of 18 and 25 depending on the ages that specific programs use for qualification.

Individuals or families whose annual income is between 150 and 200% of poverty level for their family size.