Career Training Path › Research › State licensing map

Who licenses trade schools in each state

Every state licenses or authorizes private career, trade and technical schools through a designated agency, but the agency's name and home vary widely: a higher-education commission in some states, the labor or workforce department in others, the community-college system, the secretary of state, or a stand-alone board. This map names the agency for all 50 states and DC and links to it, so you can confirm a school is licensed before you enroll.

Two things this map does not cover. Public community and technical colleges are governed by state higher-education systems, not these agencies. Cosmetology, barber and esthetics schools are usually approved by the state cosmetology or barber board instead of, or in addition to, the career-school agency.

How to use it

• Check the school is on the agency's list. Most of these agencies publish a searchable roster of licensed schools; a school that is not on it is not permitted to enroll students in that state.
• Check the program, not just the school. Licensing is often per program. Ask the agency or the school whether the specific program is approved.
• Check complaints and closures. Several agencies publish disciplinary actions and closed-school lists; the same agency handles transcripts when a school closes.
• Then check accreditation. State licensing and accreditation are separate. Every campus profile on this site names the accreditor, links to the federal record, and shows sanctions in the last 36 months.

Compiled by Career Training Path from each agency's own site, September 2026, and rechecked at each data refresh. Agency names and pages change; if a link has moved, the agency's parent department site will carry the current page. Corrections welcome via the contact page.