The Boeing Company awards grant to create mechatronics internships

Press Release

Release Date: Nov. 14, 2016

Contacts: Mary Kaye Bredeson, Executive Director of the Washington State Center of Excellence for Aerospace and Advanced Materials Manufacturing, 425-388-9987; mbredeson@everettcc.edu

The Boeing Company awards grant to create mechatronics internships

EVERETT, Wash. – The Washington State Center of Excellence for Aerospace and Advanced Materials Manufacturing has received a grant from The Boeing Company to work with employers to create mechatronics internships for low-income students.

The Center, located at Everett Community College, will build a web portal to match students with employer internships, encourage more employers to offer students work experience and share strategies with employers in four regional meetings. 

“Students need practice applying technical knowledge outside of the lab while building a career network, developing critical thinking skills and honing other workplace soft-skills that all employers look for in a job candidate,” said Mary Kaye Bredeson, Executive Director of the Washington State Center of Excellence for Aerospace and Advanced Materials Manufacturing.

That experience is especially important for low-income, first generation or underrepresented students, Bredeson said. 

“With a median salary of $60,940, increasing access to mechatronics-related internships can fast-track disadvantaged youth to a better quality of life while meeting workforce needs,” she said.

Washington state had 12,632 job postings for skilled mechatronics technicians last year. Many of these jobs were left unfilled for more than three months and labor forecasts indicate a 22 percent increase in demand over the coming years. 

Mechatronics technicians work in robotics operations, testing and equipment maintenance. Mechatronics combines the study of mechanics, electronics, pneumatics and digital control technology with a focus on an integrated systematic approach. 

EvCC’s Advanced Manufacturing Training & Education Center (AMTEC) opened a new mechatronics lab in September. The mechatronics program, which has 60 enrollments for fall quarter, was created in response to industry demand. 

About the Center of Excellence for Aerospace and Advanced Materials Manufacturing
The Center is a one-stop resource center for education and industry in the state of Washington. The center is working with community and technical colleges across the state to share curriculum, align education with industry training needs and develop partnerships to support aerospace and manufacturing education.