Episode 33: Skilled Trades

In our final episode of 2023, we drill down and learn more about Wake Tech's Building, Engineering and Skilled Technologies Division. Our high-quality faculty provides hands-on instruction in engineering, design, skilled trades and construction in more than a dozen disciplines. The college also offers an Associate in Engineering degree option for pursuing a four-year degree in engineering.

Dr. Scott Ralls welcomes Juan Benitez, program director for Electrical Systems Technology, and Jimmy Freeman, program director for Air Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration Technology. They talk in-depth about the desperate need for well-trained employees in the skilled trades across the Triangle. The panel explores how Wake Tech is meeting the need for highly skilled workers head-on by providing pathways to well-paying careers for our students. You will also uncover the steps you can take to make the jump into Wake Tech's affordable skilled trade programs.

The episode is recorded on-scene at the Center for Building Technologies on the Southern Wake Campus. The 34,000-square-foot facility enables the college to train 100 more students in Benitez's and Freeman's programs while launching a new degree program in Building Automation Technology.