Intel launches Arizona semiconductor registered apprenticeship program – Phoenix Business Journal
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Intel is rolling out a registered apprenticeship program in Arizona to meet growing demand for skilled workers in the semiconductor industry. The program, in partnership with the Fresh Start Women's Foundation, will launch in the fall with a cohort of 10 women, Intel announced Monday.
Intel Corp. is establishing its first U.S. registered apprenticeship program in Arizona to train the next wave of semiconductor technicians, the company announced Monday.
With an initial $4 million investment from the state of Arizona, Intel intends to launch the manufacturing facility technician training program in the fall, beginning with an inaugural cohort of 10 women from the Phoenix-based Fresh Start Women’s Foundation. The women previously completed the 10-day QuickStart semiconductor technician program at Mesa Community College.
Intel’s yearlong apprenticeship program will offer a combination of classroom instruction and on-the-job training to prepare participants for successful careers in the semiconductor industry. It plans to train facility technician apprentices over the next five years, according to the company.
Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), which is headquartered in Santa Clara, California, but has major semiconductor production factories in Chandler, announced the apprenticeship program Monday at an event hosted by the Arizona Commerce Authority at the ACA’s Phoenix headquarters. The event was attended by Gov. Katie Hobbs, state economic development officials and Fresh Start Women’s Foundation participants.
“Facility technicians are especially difficult to find. There is a much smaller pool of trained applicants with this specific skill set,” Christy Pambianchi, Intel’s executive vice president and chief people officer, said in her prepared remarks. “The Intel apprenticeship program addresses this challenge by expanding the semiconductor talent pipeline and providing critical support structures, especially needed for women and underrepresented groups, to help meet the workforce demand of the future.”
Hobbs said the apprenticeship program is a “bridge for middle-class Arizonans to launch a career with “limitless” potential.
“This program will also expand opportunities for women and other underrepresented groups, so all Arizonans benefit from our semiconductor boom,” Hobbs said.
Participants in Intel’s registered apprenticeship program will earn a “competitive wage” as full-time employees, according to the company. Upon successful completion, they will be guaranteed a job at Intel and receive a portable, nationally recognized credential.
The typical salary range for Intel’s manufacturing technicians is between $50,000 and $90,000, according to the company.
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“When I first applied to Fresh Start, I was struggling with postpartum depression and felt like my only identity was as a mom. Fresh Start helped me realize my potential and discover a passion for the tech field,” Laura Jabalera, a Fresh Start Women’s Foundation program participant, said in a statement. “This Intel apprenticeship offers me the chance to continue learning and start a career that inspires me. It’s about breaking the cycle of living paycheck to paycheck and creating a brighter future for myself and my daughter.”
Intel’s apprenticeship program was established in partnership with the ACA, the SEMI Foundation, the Fresh Start Women’s Foundation, Maricopa Community Colleges and the Phoenix Business and Workforce Development Board.
Intel aims to potentially expand the new apprenticeship program to its other U.S. sites in Oregon and Ohio, but did not disclose additional details nor how much it plans to invest in this internship program.
Intel was awarded $50 million as part of its overall CHIPS Act funding package specifically for workforce development. As soon as the company receives that portion of funding, it expects to allocate it to support its apprenticeship programs and other education and training programs in the future, according to the company.
Overall, Intel said it has invested more than $250 million in academic collaborations over the past five years to help close the industry skills gap. It’s continuing to strengthen the workforce pipeline through national and local partnerships, including QuickStart, the 10-day semiconductor technician training program created by Maricopa Community Colleges and industry partners.
Special report: How Arizona is preparing for a flood of new semiconductor jobs
Interest in the QuickStart program has been significant since its inception in 2022. While the program had to temporarily reduce the number of classes it offered in response to a decline in job postings, the Business Journal previously reported, the next round of classes is slated to begin in August, according to the Maricopa Community Colleges website.
Intel’s apprenticeship program joins other workforce-related investments to help meet the growing demand for skilled semiconductor industry workers.
In January, TSMC invested $5 million to establish a semiconductor technician registered apprenticeship program. The program kicked off in April with its first cohort of eight apprentices. The program, which is expected to run 18 to 24 months, will scale over five years with an initial goal of training 80 local facility technician apprentices, the Business Journal previously reported.
The ACA has invested $100 million to enhance semiconductor infrastructure, workforce and research while spurring private sector investment.
Separately, Applied Materials and Arizona State University received $47.5 million to establish the first of its kind materials-to-fab laboratory at the university’s MacroTechnology Works facility to support advanced packaging and GaN capabilities. In addition, the state established its first registered apprenticeship program with NXP Semiconductors to support the semiconductor industry.
Since 2020, Arizona had more than 40 semiconductor company expansions, representing more than $102 billion in capital investment and 15,700 jobs. Some of those projects include TSMC’s fabs under construction in north Phoenix and Intel’s factories under construction at its Ocotillo campus in Chandler, where it plans to hire thousands of workers.
The ACA is working closely with the SEMI Foundation to scale the semiconductor registered apprenticeship model across the entire industry ecosystem, Sandra Watson, the ACA’s president and CEO, at Monday’s press conference.
“Apprenticeships represent a key step in that pipeline and complement other exciting programs that we have pioneered, such as the QuickStart program at Maricopa Community College and our Future48 workforce accelerators,” Watson said. “… One thing is clear when it comes to workforce collaboration, Arizona does it better than any other state in the nation. That is a big reason why we lead the country in semiconductor investments.”
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