March 6, 2015 - Local High School Students Compete in Automotive Challenge
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Steven Surrick and Tim McDonald, both of Bucks County Technical High School, took home first place at UTI-Exton's Top Tech Challenge. The winning duo was awarded a stocked UTI Snap-On® toolbox (valued at $10,000) for their high school. |
Paired in teams of two, students from more than 30 regional high schools participated in a Top Tech Challenge at Universal Technical Institute’s (UTI) Exton campus on January 24.
Steven Surrick and Tim McDonald, both from Bucks County Technical High School in Fairless Hills, took home first place after securing the top scores overall on a written test and four hands-on challenges that tasked students with solving real-life scenarios involving vehicle parts, diagnostics, brakes and electrical systems – all key elements in which today’s automotive technician should be fluent.
The winning duo received a stocked UTI Snap-On® toolbox (valued at $10,000) for their high school, as well as a $2,000 voucher for Snap-On® tools. Other top scoring teams won Snap-On gift certificates valued at $1,500 for second-place winners and $1,000 for third-place winners. Students from the highest scoring teams were also awarded their own prize money ($1,000 for first-place winners, $500 for second-place winners and $250 for third-place winners).
“The purpose of this competition is to build awareness for the important role auto technicians play in today’s workforce, spotlight their specialized skills and the high-tech nature of this business, and give students a chance to compete in a real-world setting and do things professional technicians do every day,” said Bob Kessler, Campus President at UTI-Exton.
Today’s transportation service technicians are experts in the complex and innovative digital systems that keep modern vehicles running, and technicians with high-tech, hands-on training are in demand. According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, the industry will have an average of more than 37,000 job openings for skilled technicians every year.
“With so much talk surrounding STEM education and its role in closing the skills gap, UTI’s role in connecting jobs to education is more critical than ever before and the Top Tech Challenge is aimed at doing just that,” said Kevin Gero, Regional Admissions Director at UTI-Exton.
