Bosch Scholars Program Creates Ready-Made Technicians
D
oug Wilson wishes he had had the benefits of a mentoring experience with a technical scholars program when he was studying for an Electronics Engineering Technology degree back in 1991.
Wilson, who has been a Bosch employee for 21 years, remembers the questions he had daily as an entry-level technician right out of college and how a scholars program that includes technical training and a oneon-one mentor would have helped him and many others to transition into the workplace. Wilson, now a Senior Associate Development Specialist at Bosch’s Anderson plant, spent this past year implementing a scholars program with Tri-County evening students in their last semester. The program helps students to adapt to their workplaces more quickly by getting hands-on experience in various areas of the manufacturing process, introducing them to departmental colleagues and their job functions, and providing an overview of policies and procedures, as well as an understanding of plant protocol. Wilson added, “My training was two to three weeks on first shift and then I was on my own. Our scholars work four months just training. We’re getting ready-made technicians who will feel engaged right from the beginning, and therefore have a personal and professional investment in the company.”
Tyler Watkins, a 2013 IET graduate, right, in lab with his Bosch mentor, Barry Gray 6 | Your Community, Your College
Michael Langer, a Mechatronics major, and Tyler Watkins, an Industrial Electronics Technology major, were the first two students selected for the program. Thomas Handy, an 18-year-employee who works as a