When a Tompkinsville wire and cable manufacturer closed its doors in 2007 in order to move production to a new plant in Mexico, many of the company’s employees opted to return to school and pursue a different career.

Five of them chose careers as radiologists and began taking classes a month after the plant closed at MedVance Institute in Cookeville, Tenn.

They weren’t alone. Many people who have lost their jobs due to the downturn in the economy have made the decision to return to school for either additional training or to launch an entirely different career. As a result, many colleges, universities and technical schools throughout the area have witnessed an increase in enrollment due to a large number of people who have returned to school, among them is Bowling Green Technical College.

“We are seeing students coming back to school after being laid off from their place of employment,” said Phil Neal, provost for BGTC. “We may see record enrollment again this year but cannot contribute all this enrollment to laid off workers.”

Several students who have made the decision to return to school are pursuing additional training that may help them land similar jobs to the ones they had prior to being laid off.

“We have many technical programs that are full, but we still have room in many programs and can accommodate students regardless of what career field they may choose,” Neal said.

Even though the school has experienced an increase in enrollment, Neal said there are very few students on waiting lists.

“We have waiting lists for some programs, but these are programs that we generally have waiting lists for,” he said.

One reason why healthcare programs have waiting lists is because many of them require students to do clinical rotations outside classroom work. There is a limited amount of clinical sites available . The other reason is because healthcare programs are popular areas of study, said Mark Brooks, director of public relations for BGTC.

“Our health programs stay completely full,” he said. “It’s a popular career field. The employment in those programs is almost 100 percent all the time and it’s good pay.”

BGTC has offered an LPN program at its Glasgow campus for many years and recently launched an RN program. The school also recently opened an LPN program at its Bowling Green campus.

“We have been able to increase the nursing program to accommodate more people,” Brooks said.

MedVance Institute has also seen an increase in enrollment due to dislocated workers and other economic issues.

“The Cookeville Campus offers seven programs of study, all of which are in the healthcare industry. Prospective students are realizing that training for employment in the healthcare industry prepares them for a career that will provide more job security as well as opportunity for advancement,” said Shirley Cole, director of MedVance Institute’s Cookeville Campus. “Healthcare is something that is always going to be here. It’s a very, very viable career and it will withstand no matter what the economy brings. So, it’s kind of recession proof.”

MedVance Institute offers two associate degree programs in applied science and programs that students can get in and out of in nine months, she said.