Two-year program trains its students to operate lasers
By Sarah Schuch
The Flint Journal
FLINT TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Flint-area students will soon be able to break into an in-demand technology career field thanks to a new program at Baker College of Flint that is a first of its kind in Michigan.
Starting this fall, Baker will offer an associate degree program to train photonics and laser technicians, a skill that employers often have to find outside of the state or in other countries, according to The Flint Journal.
“We’d hire two or three people today if they had them out of Baker,” said Mike Klos, general manager of IPG Midwest Operations, a Novi-based firm that sells lasers for automotive welding. “We move people from different parts of the country or even out of the country to get someone that is qualified. We could easier hire two more today in the Midwest, but there just aren’t that many qualified.”
The two-year Baker program would train students to operate laser or photonic equipment for potential use at hospitals, automotive manufacturing companies, defense purposes and other opportunities.
An estimated 250 to 300 technicians graduate annually from the approximate 30 colleges across the country that offer photonics instruction.
There’s a demand for at least 800 techs, said Michelle Stock, inaugural board chair of Mi-Light, a photonics cluster formed to support the state’s photonics-related businesses.
That’s why the new program was formed, said Anca Sala, dean of engineering and computer technology for Baker.
The program kicks off this fall and will offer students the option to get into the photonics and laser career field without a Ph.D. or master’s degree, something that is unique to Michigan colleges.
“(The program is) based on needs of the industry. Across the United States, it’s the same need. There are not enough people who go into this field,” Sala said. “This is a growing industry we want to support. ... It’s a high-tech area. It’s a well-paid field.
Starting salaries for photonics techs can be upwards of $50,000 and grads can expect 3-4 job offers, according a Baker release.
Photonics has everything to do with light, Sala said. It’s a big field that can involve anything from illumination to lasers and fiber optics.
Lasers can be used to cut metal, weld and perform surgeries while training can also be applied to areas such as solar panels, smart phones, computers, microchips and grocery store scanners.
The program will include math and science courses, as well as electronic simulated course. Students will have basic electrical courses and then move into specialty courses where they go into optics and lasers, Sala said.
Students in the photonics and laser technology program will be required to complete an internship and capstone project, where they create a system hands-on to prove everything they’ve learned in the program.
A National Science Foundation grant of almost $200,000 will be used to upgrade the existing lasers lab and bring in new and upgraded equipment. Some of the grant will also be used for community outreach, such as talking to high school students and organizing summer camps to expose more students to the career options of photonics and laser technician, Sala said.
There are other colleges in Michigan that offer specialized training in photonics but Baker is the first one to lead to a degree, said Stock, president of mlstock Consulting.
Companies often send employees through their own training or take students from a program in Iowa, she said.
“There are few and far between coming out of that program. The needs are really increasing,” Stock said. “There’s definitely a gap (between trained individuals and available positions). And the gap is probably larger than we realize.”
The program at Baker is an exciting one, Stock said. It will let people know that there are jobs in the field and that there are people eager to find qualified students to fill those jobs, she said.
Hopefully it becomes a win-win, Stock said.
A career in photonics and laser technology is never boring, Klos said. His employees get to travel and become an expert in what they do, he said.
He’s eager to see Baker’s program up and running, Klos said.
“I would say this is a unique program. Baker is trying to find programs like this one that works with the industry,” Sala said. “It is going to differentiate Baker from other colleges that don’t have this program.”
