Finding experience and a career under the hood

Across the street from the main campus, Olympic College students operate a fully functioning business while learning the ins and outs of a hands-on trade.

In the six-bay service shop, students mill about diagnosing problems in a variety of automobiles from a Pontiac Sunfire to a Buick Roadmaster.

More than just identifying technical issues, students in the Automotive Technology program at OC achieve first-hand knowledge in everything from writing up estimates to performing the repairs.

Diagnoses and fixes are made on shop-acquired and donated cars as well as customer vehicles.

The enterprising technicians earn course credit toward an Associate of Technical Arts degree and gain real-life experience at the same time according to program director and lead faculty Steve Quinn.

Quinn, who worked as an automotive tech for 20 years before teaching at OC, said the shop is designed to run like a real business to better prepare students to enter the workforce immediately after, or even before, graduation.

“(We) run a live shop,” Quinn said. “Because we have a real work environment, it helps to keep them motivated.”

The courses and shop floor experience are also designed to prepare students for the Automotive Service Excellence certification, an industry standard that Quinn said is “just about essential” for students to find employment.

Some of Quinn’s students said they appreciate the “live” feeling of the shop, the high standards promoted and the decades of experience Quinn passes on to them.

“Steve Quinn is an excellent teacher. You really feel like you’re learning something from him,” said 26-year-old Amanda Spaulding. “This shop has maintained some of the highest cleanliness standards of any shop I’ve seen.”

Spaulding said she has some experience working in shops out in town and is a second-generation automotive student in her family. Her uncle went through the program in the 1970s and went on to make a career as an automotive technician. She said she hopes to own a shop someday.

The program takes approximately two calendar years to complete and includes daily coursework and both in-house and outside business internships. Previous experience can factor into how long it takes to complete the program.

Students are required to spend five hours a day, five days a week in the shop environment for four of the seven quarters. Students also spend a summer quarter in the program.

Adjunct faculty member Steven Randall said the courses are ideal for those wanting to quickly get out of the classroom and into a shop.

“It doesn’t cost them a lot of money and it doesn’t take a lot of time to complete the program successfully,” said Randall.

Randall and Quinn are both active in placing students in internships across the county. Former students have technician jobs in various businesses including the Honda and Buick dealerships in the West Hills complex in Bremerton.

Preparing students for post-graduation work was one of the first roadblocks facing Quinn when he started teaching at OC 13 years ago. He said one of his goals was to move from a “hobby shop” to a real business.

Quinn said the level of expertise among graduates has not always been a source of pride for the program. He said that after being hired, he asked businesses owners for their thoughts on OC automotive graduates. Their response was disinterested at best.

According to Quinn, one business owner told him, “He would rather hire someone untrained, off the street than from the program.”

Quinn credits the course certification by the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation as a turning point in the program’s history.

“Becoming certified ourselves has been the biggest help,” said Quinn.

The NATEF also assesses students before graduation. Quinn said the program consistently ranks in the upper half of all schools in the country and some OC students score in the 90 percent range.

From some students, the program is another shot at earning a living in a sore economy.

Quinn said despite the current job market, skilled technicians “are still highly in demand” and every off-site intern has landed a job offer.

David Andrews, 29, was laid off from his construction job in November. Having some previous automotive experience, Andrews chose OC as place to change careers.

 As he prepares to graduate this year, Andrews said he hopes the education and experience he gets from Quinn and the program will land him a job.

“I want to be able to take care of my family,” said Andrews. “This program is the best I’ve ever seen. You do it all here.”

Older students are not uncommon on the shop floor. According to Quinn, “ (it) has always been a pretty non-traditional program.”

Randall said he enjoys seeing the older generation come back and likes teaching them an even older trade.

“It makes me feel good to have these kinds of people come in here,” said Randall.

 Randall said he fears there is a decrease in those wanting to become skilled technicians, especially among the younger students.

“They don’t see dad changing the oil in the driveway anymore,” said Randall. “This is not an easy trade to pursue. Automobiles are so complicated now.”

 According to Randall, the industry has adopted new, tougher standards over time and only the most highly trained are landing jobs.

“There is no such thing as grease monkeys anymore, only well-trained technicians,” said Randall.

 At the end of the day, Quinn said the program stresses the finer points of automotive technology and being the best technician one can be.

“It’s not about owning a shop,” said Quinn. “(The students) are part of a customer service enterprise. I like to see people kind of settle in and have it work for them.”

The Automotive Service Center is open for business and offers various specials throughout the year. The ASC office can be reached at (360) 475-7348.