No matter what stage of life you're in, there's always an opportunity to keep growing. One of the best ways you can do that is by visiting a career center in your area to either grow your skills in an existing area, learn new skills, or meet people who can help you ascend on your current career path.

But what exactly is an adult career center and what do they do? Below are a few specialties that adult career centers can offer.

1. Continuing Education

Whether you've never attended any kind of secondary education or you've got an advanced degree in a complex field, there is an educational program that is right for you. While many career centers offer post-secondary training in teaching and computers, they also offer training in many trades, such as welding, machinery, HVAC repair, and plumbing. Furthermore, your adult career center may also offer many of these classes online (important in a COVID-19 world), so ask them about available distance-learning options.

2. Job Placements

Education is great, but the point of a career center is to actually provide training to enter the workforce. While nobody can ever be guaranteed a job, you will have the opportunity to make connections that can help you in your career path, as well as also possibly obtaining apprenticeships with masters in your field. Once you've acquired the proper credentials for your job, you should speak to a counselor about finding work near you.

3. Financial Assistance

Pivoting careers is tough work for a lot of reasons, but it can especially be a strain on your finances. Most adult career centers provide some type of financial aid to help you with your coursework, such as grants, scholarships, or other federally-funded programs. While it may not be possible to have your entire educational plan funded, these types of programs should help take some of the burden off to make the process much more manageable.

4. Specialized Coursework

Even if you're not pursuing a completely different field, professionally-speaking, you should still talk to your local adult career center about special interest courses that can help enrich you personally. Some of these courses include cake decorating, photography, or meditation. So, if you're looking to further your education in any way, a career center should be able to provide you with the resources you need to make that happen.

If you're ready to expand your career options, reach out to local adult career centers.