Local UTI campus offering behind-the-scenes look at skilled trades

EXTON >> Local students and their families will get an exclusive look at careers in automotive and diesel engineering as part of a Technician Career Expo and Open House hosted by Universal Technical Institute-Exton on Jan. 17 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Guests will tour UTI’s state-of the-industry labs, experience live demonstrations such as a running dynamometer (or “dyno”) and hands-on exercises with a hydraulics trainer; and participate in interactive STEM activities. They can meet with local companies – including Bridgestone, Cummins, FedEx, Penske, and a host of local dealerships and service centers – who employ UTI graduates and offer tuition reimbursement plans and other hiring incentives.

In addition, instructors will share information about UTI’s industry-aligned core training programs, as well as the advanced courses that train students in specific manufacturers’ products and technologies. At UTI-Exton, students can study Ford, Lincoln, Toyota, Lexus, Cummins, and Peterbilt.

UTI-Exton is one of 13 UTI campuses hosting Technician Career Expo and Open Houses nationwide.

“In Pennsylvania, and across the nation, demand for well-trained technicians is high and the opportunities are nearly limitless,” said Bob Kessler, Campus President. “This event is a chance for local students to learn more about these rewarding, high-tech careers, and for employers to share their growing need for skilled technicians and the great jobs they have available.”

The U.S. Department of Labor projects that, by 2026, there will be more than 1.2 million job openings in the automotive, diesel and collision repair industries. To help reach that total, the transportation industry will need to fill more than 120,000 technician job openings annually, on average. According to Kessler, UTI students can complete their training and be ready to fill those jobs in as little as 11 months.