(CNNMoney) — As millions of young Americans struggle to land jobs, students in manufacturing trade schools are sitting in a sweet spot. They’re being hired even before they graduate.

Two weeks ago, students from the manufacturing program in Chicago’s Wilbur Wright-Humboldt Park vocational college attended a local job fair.

In the program, students go beyond basic machining with classes in computer design, machine shop technology and machine shop math.

Manufacturers in the Chicago area are busier than ever lately, and they’re ‘begging’ for more workers trained in advanced manufacturing skills like CNC machining, said Redd.

It’s not just in Chicago. Factory work has picked up considerably nationwide, making skilled workers a valuable commodity, said Marc Smierciak, associate dean of instruction at the vocational college.

$100K manufacturing jobs

‘Employers right now need workers with these high-precision skills. But the mismatch is that most of America’s unemployed workforce doesn’t possess these skills,’ Smierciak said.

So manufacturers are racing to trade schools like Wilbur Wright, one of only seven schools in Illinois that offer an accredited CNC course, and snapping up newly-minted factory workers as quickly as they can.

The demand for his graduates is so intense that last year’s CNC graduating class scored a 100% job placement.

‘It’s a wonderful accomplishment for us,’ said Smierciak. It was the first time the school achieved perfect placement in the program’s 15-year history. Smierciak expects this year’s graduating class to meet with similar success.

To get into the program, students need a high school diploma or the equivalent and can go part-time or full-time.

The starting salary for the new hires averages about $40,000 a year, with the potential to jump to $55,000 to $65,000 in less than two years, he said.

As word spread about last year’s record, the school is seeing a rush of new applications. ‘We usually enroll 20 students max per year,’ said Smierciak. ‘We are at overcapacity right now with 27 students in the day program and 14 in the night one.’

Some of them are young high school graduates, while others are middle-aged displaced workers retraining themselves for in-demand skills.

Reynaldo Roman, 21, had been thinking about going to college to study electrical engineering when his friend told him about Wilbur Wright’s CNC course.

As the primary income earner in his family, Roman weighed his options, applied to Wilbur Wright and won a full scholarship to cover the $5,800 CNC program.

‘I’m soaking in as much as I can,’ he said. ‘I’m hopeful I’ll land a job after I graduate.’

Norma Trinidad, 50, lost her…READ the rest of the story by following the link:http://money.cnn.com/2012/03/14/smallbusiness/trade-schools/index.htm