On-the-job training (OJT) is a form of training taking place in a normal working situation.

On-the-job training, sometimes called direct instruction, is one of the earliest forms of training (observational learning is probably the earliest). It is a one-on-one training located at the job site, where someone who knows how to do a task shows another how to perform it. In antiquity, the work performed by most people did not rely on abstract thinking or academic education. Parents or community members, who knew the skills necessary for survival, passed their knowledge on to the children through direct instruction.