In short
Three public routes cover most of Texas: Texas State Technical College (11 campuses, trades from HVAC and welding to electrical lineworker and diesel), the big community college systems in Dallas and Houston, and your nearest regional community college. Money: the Texas Educational Opportunity Grant is a need-based grant at public two-year schools — about $6,402 a year max at community colleges and about $13,479 at public technical institutes for 2025–26 — plus Pell and GI Bill. Start with your city or fill out the form to match by ZIP.
What Texas pays for
Texas money for training
- TEOG (Texas Educational Opportunity Grant)
- Need-based grants for students in associate-degree or certificate programs at Texas public two-year schools. For 2025–26 the yearly maximum is about $6,402 at community colleges, about $13,479 at public technical institutes, and about $5,499 at public state colleges, per the state's program guidelines. Priority goes to students with the greatest financial need.
- Pell Grant
- Federal, up to about $7,395 for 2025–26, applied for with the free FAFSA at studentaid.gov. Works at every qualifying Texas school.
- WIOA
- Free training through your local Texas workforce board (Workforce Solutions office) if you qualify and the program is approved before you start.
- GI Bill & Hazlewood
- Federal GI Bill covers most trade schools and CDL programs; Texas veterans should also ask each school about Hazlewood Act tuition exemption eligibility.
Sources: Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (TEOG program guidelines); Federal Student Aid; Texas Veterans Commission (Hazlewood Act). Rules change; confirm with the school's financial aid office.
Hazlewood deserves a special note because it surprises veterans who move to Texas: it's a Texas exemption that can cover tuition at public schools for eligible Texas veterans — separate from the GI Bill, with its own residency and service rules. Ask the school's veterans office, not the admissions desk.
Where to train
Texas State Technical College (TSTC)
The state's own technical college, with 11 locations including Waco, Harlingen, Sweetwater, Abilene, Marshall, and Fort Bend County. TSTC teaches exactly the trades this site covers — HVAC, welding (at every location), electrical construction, lineworker, diesel equipment, plumbing and pipefitting, auto — plus health programs like vocational nursing. Details and campus list at tstc.edu.
Big-city community colleges
Dallas College runs HVAC, electrical technology, welding, machining, and construction programs across its campuses (dallascollege.edu), and Houston Community College teaches the same trades across Houston (hccs.edu). Public two-year tuition in Texas is low, TEOG and Pell stack here, and both systems offer evening options — for most people this is the smaller written total in the metro, but get both numbers and compare.
Private trade schools
Private CDL, welding, and health schools exist across Texas metros with fast start dates. They cost more than the public routes, and TEOG doesn't apply — but Pell, GI Bill, and payment plans usually do. Get the total in writing and put it next to your community college number before you decide. For CDL specifically, confirm any school is on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry before paying.
Cities
In progress: Houston and San Antonio pages are being written with local school and pay data. Until they're up, the form matches by ZIP — it works across the whole state.
Texas schools near you
A ZIP code and a trade is all the form needs. Schools near you that teach it will reach out.
Questions from Texas
How much is trade school in Texas?
It varies by route, so ask for written totals rather than trusting one number. The public routes (TSTC and community colleges) are the low end and are where TEOG and Pell apply; private trade schools charge more for similar outcomes. Any school's aid office will print your expected total after grants — that's the number to compare.
What is TEOG and do I qualify?
The Texas Educational Opportunity Grant is state money for financial-need students in certificate or associate programs at Texas public two-year schools. You apply through the FAFSA and the school's aid office; priority goes to students with the greatest need, and the state sets a January 15 priority deadline for many programs.
Is TSTC only for recent high school grads?
No. Trades programs at TSTC and the community colleges are full of adults changing careers, and evening and online options exist for many programs. The bigger question for working adults is schedule, not age — ask each school what their sections look like.
What do trades pay in Texas?
Nationally, electricians earn a median of about $62,350 and diesel techs about $61,770 (BLS), and Texas's big metros tend to run at or above national medians for experienced trades workers. Each career page on this site names its sources and the honest starting bands.
Does Texas have anything like free community college?
Some local programs do exist — Dallas College, for example, offers up to three years of free tuition to seniors at partner high schools through its Promise program, and free training through WorkReadyU for eligible adults. These are school-by-school programs, not a statewide guarantee, so ask the specific college what they offer.