Enrollment at State Tech’s Electrical Technology Program leads this year’s enrollment surge as the college has seen record numbers over the last several years as demand for trade jobs has increased. 

“Our customers are our employers,” said Technology Dean Ben Berhorst. “The money generation is from the student side, but at the end of the day the employers are the ones that keep us going so we have to put out a good product and we respond when they ask us to do stuff.”

The Electrical Technology Program, a two-year associate’s degree, can best be described as a course in becoming a traditional electrician and encompasses new construction such as running conduits and pulling wires, as well as service electricians who repair electrical issues in residential, commercial, or industrial settings.

State Tech offers several programs and currently has a 99% job placement rate. Even with the current number of students, Berhorst said the school’s phones are ringing off the hook with employers telling them that they need more help.

“In these programs, we have decided to increase enrollment,” said Berhorst. “Some people said ‘you’ll probably see a drop off in demand as you fill those positions but there is no end in sight. We can’t fill them.”

Berhorst added that contractors and employers he has talked with have told him that they have more work than people to fill the positions and that they are turning down jobs because of these specialized labor issues.

“It’s kind of scary,” Berhorst said. “Who’s going to keep the country rolling if there isn’t anybody to do the work? We’ve seen no decline in demand.”

With increased enrollment, the college has made some changes to keep the quality of its instruction at the highest level possible, including hiring more staff and lab assistants and making schedule modifications to accommodate the higher number of students. This means programs saw the addition of an instructor and, in some cases, the addition of a lab assistant so that one-on-one interaction can continue throughout the course.

According to Berhorst, other programs offered at State Tech that have recently seen an increase in demand and higher enrollment are Electrical Distribution (electrical line worker), Heavy Equipment Operations, Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning, Utility Systems Technician, Drafting & Design Engineering Technology, and Precision Machining. 

Programs increasing enrollment next fall due to industry demand are Automation and Robotics, Civil Engineering Technology, and Medium/Heavy Truck Technology.

Berhorst offered some advice for current, and future, students, saying, “Be prepared to never stop learning. We build a strong foundation and once you leave here, there’s hundreds of paths any graduate can take. Just take every day as a learning experience. Technology is changing the world and the people that want to engage that technology and keep working for it are going to rise to the top and be in a really good place.” 

For more information about programs, visit www.statetechmo.edu.