ACC, University of Texas to launch new semiconductor training center

A new semiconductor training center will set up shop in Central Texas.

It’s thanks to a new partnership between The University of Texas at Austin, Austin Community College District and Texas Institute for Electronics (TIE).

In a news release, UT said the program will “serve as a one-stop shop for an industry in need of skilled labor, creating seamless and coordinated education pathways between UT and ACC to address every skill set on the semiconductor workforce continuum, ranging from equipment technician to semiconductor engineer.”

Under the partnership they will develop the following:

• A joint semiconductor training center
• Semiconductor curriculum and credentialing

“Really to help build semiconductor workforce pathways from K-12 up to PhD engineers. Sort of combining forces to make sure that we’re really creating a comprehensive model for training at industry talent,” said TIE’s Director for Workforce Development Alyssa Reinhart.

The release said a recent report from the Semiconductor Industry Association and Oxford Economics found 67,000 new semiconductor jobs are at risk of going unfilled because of an “undersized workforce and lack of training programs.”

Reinhart said the Austin region has always been a critical component of the semiconductor industry and this is a step to create a skilled talent pipeline.

“You see a lot of reports that talk about the number of technicians that are needed at the national scale, as well as your engineers and computer scientists,” Reinhart said.

Reinhart said they’re taking a comprehensive approach and will touch on all the positions within this field. KXAN