- Well if you are a parent or a grandparent, you've likely watched your teens struggle to choose a career.

Sometimes the best way to figure it out is to give things a try, even if it's not what they want to do.

You're making progress.

"Carolina Impacts" Dara Khaalid and videographer, Russ Hunsinger take us to Troutman Vocational School to see how students are finding their paths.

(drill whirring) (upbeat music) - [Dara] It is a sight to see inside the career academy and technical school.

- Apply sealer to the throws of that bowl.

- [Dara] If you didn't know it was a high school classroom, you might think it's a real auto shop with cars high in the air on lifts, hands working under hoods, and thorough inspections of damage.

- When you bring a car to me, something like this, I can figure out how much it's gonna cost to fix.

I can figure out what needs to be fixed on there, any hidden damages, I can get to that, and provide it to the customer to figure out what they have to do to get this car new again.

So we have a little bit of damage right here.

- [Dara] These sharp collision estimating skills you see senior Wyatt Donahue using were learned right here in the automotive technology program.

- There's not really like big schools that you can go do to learn estimating.

You kind of just are pushed into it and figure it out, but with here, you have a lot of opportunities to figure it out.

In a safe environment, you can screw up, you can learn again.

- [Jason] And these lessons have been paying off since January months before he walks the stage.

- I'm working at Flow Collision in Statesville.

They have me set in line for a job the minute I graduate.

So the opportunity that I have is really, really great because I'm starting somewhere where I can learn and I can grow, and then once that job hits, I'm ready.

- The shifter up here actually has four bolts that holds the shifter assembly in.

- [Dara] Automotive instructor Justin Bennett says success stories like this are the norm because students are gaining skills that employers want.

- These are actually for the Kia that is here in Bay four.

- [Dara] Like being knowledgeable of parts and handling repair orders, but most importantly... - They don't ask for a student that can change a tire.

They want students that can show up on time that know how to communicate with a customer that can communicate with their employer.

So go ahead and pull the quarter pins out.

- [Dara] So by the time they graduate, they're fully prepared to head into jobs that have a starting salary around $26 an hour.

That's about $54,000 a year according to Indeed.

- Then as you work up and you start working on more complicated systems and making more complicated repairs, you can actually grow quite a large salary.

So if you get into a larger dealer network, especially in some of your larger cities in North Carolina, there is no reason a good technician won't make six figures a year.

- [Dara] This is one of the higher paying industries that students can step into right outta high school.

(upbeat music) But there's also welding where the starting salary is around $23 an hour.

- It's a huge need.

I have people coming in here every day calling me, looking for welders.

- [Dara] In the program, students learn the three basic processes of welding.

- We also teach them fabrication skills, believe it or not, reading rulers how to cut metal, different things, how to plan out how to build something.

- [Dara] On top of that, they help students get important certifications that'll make them marketable to employers.

- I already have a few job openings in NASCAR for once I got all my certifications, so I'm hoping to move there.

- [Dara] The Career Academy and Technical School is a public school with the Iredell Statesville system.

It's designed for juniors and seniors.

Students split their day between here and their traditional high school where they do their core courses.

Once they arrive at the academy, their work shifts begin.

- We put a lot of emphasis on coming here on time, coming here every day, and we tell them, you know, we are preparing you for the real world and nobody's going to allow you to come to work late or miss work.

Tell me what you working on today.

- Well, we would just- - [Dara] Larry Rogers has been principal since 2011.

Throughout his time, he's taken it from three to 11 hands-on programs.

- [Larry] We built it based on the needs in our community and the needs nationally.

We look at national reports and try to create programs that not only fit our students, but also will fit in our community.

- [Dara] Some of those programs are pharmacy, tech, EMT, and firefighting, where students practice real scenarios in full gear using donated items from local departments.

(upbeat music) And then there's the culinary arts program where seniors like Sydney Thornhill use what they learn in the classroom.

- It's helped me a lot know my way around the kitchen in there and how to be safe when serving food, - [Dara] Which helps fuel the local economy.

- I actually work and help in food trucks.

- That is really good.

Sydney oh my gosh.

- [Dara] Her instructor Deneen Delavante couldn't be prouder.

- This is what we are here for.

This is what we do.

What I give these students is a taste of what my journey was like and their journey will take on its own form, but letting them know it's a safe place to do it.

Good job, Sydney.

That looks wonderful.

(upbeat music) - [Dara] So whether students' interests take them to a kitchen, a hospital room, or a podcast studio instructors say these teens are ready to enter the workforce right after graduation.

For "Carolina Impact," I'm Dara Khaalid.