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Job seekers who aspire to embrace a trade, not shuffle each workday into an office cubicle, should take a closer look at Luzerne County Community College’s new offerings.
Its trio of technical programs to be introduced or enhanced this fall will appeal to certain people who enjoy engaging their hands as well as their brains.
Among the latest options: engineering design and manufacturing, which includes coursework such as “Introduction to Robotics.”
Also available as classes resume Aug. 31: diesel truck technology and welding.
Each program aims to prepare students for in-demand, tech jobs – the kind of posts certain Northeastern Pennsylvania employers are hungry to fill. Plus, each program typically can be completed in two years or less; in some cases, participants can snag a diploma in a single semester.
Aspiring welders, for example, can complete LCCC’s semester-long program by satisfactorily performing in classes such as “Applied Mathematics for Industry” and “Introduction to Gas Tungsten Arc Welding.” Presumably, these trained torch bearers will be highly marketable to area employers, including firms extracting natural gas from the fuel-rich Marcellus Shale.
Skills matter. That’s particularly true in specific technology fields, which, observers say, soon will require an influx of new workers to compensate for a “retirement bubble.”
The Nanticoke-based community college retooled its tech offerings to match employer demand, thanks in part to a multi-year, $1.8 million federal Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Grant.
In the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre region, where the unemployment rate in recent years perpetually hovers above both state and national averages, LCCC and jobs training programs offered elsewhere represent a compelling alternative to the traditional, four-year university path.
Carefully weigh your choices. How much is the upfront expense of the education? What is the likelihood of future employment in that specialty? What are the expected salary levels and the non-monetary rewards?
Our only suggestion: Don’t allow yourself to be pigeonholed by others to follow a particular “track.”
Someone enrolled in LCCC’s diesel truck technology certificate program, as opposed to the single-semester diploma program, will be exposed both to “Airbrake and Suspension Systems” class and English composition. You might groan at the writing requirement. Or you might decide to fix trucks by day and, by night, strive to write the next great American novel.
It’s your life: Spend your time doing the things that bring you fulfillment.