(ROSENBERG, Texas) – Every parking lot was full on Tuesday, March 25, at Texas State Technical College’s Fort Bend County campus. The Industrial Technology Center was likewise full with booths and people, all for the Industry Job Fair taking place that morning.
Over 50 different companies and employers from throughout the state were in attendance, each hoping to talk with students and alumni from the various programs at the college. One such employer, Applied Materials, was doing more than getting their name out there.
“We build the machines that make semiconductor chips,” said Steven Metze, the company’s program manager. “While we are trying to get our name out there, we are also actively hiring.”
According to Metze, the semiconductor industry is booming, leading to a large shortage in available workers. While most people don’t come into their company knowing everything, having a foundation in electrical engineering, troubleshooting and the like goes a long way. As such, they were looking to hire from programs such as Robotics and Industrial Controls Technology and Industrial Systems.
Thankfully for Metze, enrollment at TSTC’s Fort Bend County campus has been increasing at a record pace. Program classes were mostly cancelled the day of the job fair, replaced instead with encouragement to attend the fair, meet employers and apply for jobs.
Michael Martinez, a student working toward his associate degree in Robotics and Industrial Controls Technology, was excited to learn more about the career paths available to him.
“I came into this fair just looking for what jobs I might be able to do,” Martinez said. “Many of the people (employers) told me about opportunities that I never even knew existed, like programming robots to weld.”
For more information about TSTC, go to tstc.edu.
