安德鲁·亨特是中央卡罗来纳社区学院的毕业生, now working at Cree -- one of America's top semiconductor manufacturers.
SANFORD - Andrew Hunter is just 19 years old, but you can't tell it from his resume.
At a stage in life when many of his peers are just settling into college life, the Sanford resident has already graduated with two college degrees: the Associate in Science, a general education degree designed for students planning to transfer into a four-year university, and the Associate in Applied Science in Laser and Photonics Technology, a career-oriented degree teaching students how to control light and electrical energy. Along the way, he also earned the Certificate in Electronics Engineering Technology.
Oh, and one more thing: He's now wrapping up his first year as a clean room process technician at Cree, working at its headquarters for one of America's top semiconductor manufacturers.
对于一个职业来说还不错，更不用说年轻时的工作了.
工作中的生活
It's hard to pin down what he does in an average day on the job, 主要是因为似乎没有平均的一天. 亨特是该公司光刻团队的一员, a group that uses light-sensitive materials to transfer geometric patterns onto one layer of a wafer, 哪个会成为半导体的一部分. As the manufacturing process continues, chemicals are used to etch that pattern into the wafer. His specific role is to run tests and use the data to improve the manufacturing process.
这项工作真正需要的是理解产品, having a lot of technical expertise and being able to adapt to whatever issues arise. "I do a lot in my job; there's something new every day," says Hunter. "I'm always trying to do a few different things and solve a few different problems. When things go wrong, they ask me to find the problem -- and then find a solution."
为成功做准备
That's a lot of responsibility, but Hunter says he was well prepared for the challenge. 这要从他进入李早期学院开始说起, a public high school on the 中央卡罗莱纳社区学院 campus in Sanford that allows students to complete high school and an associate degree in five years or less -- one year ahead of the typical path and all for free. When he walked onto campus that first day, Hunter wasn't sure what degree he wanted to pursue. His first idea was veterinary science, but that soon gave way to mechanical engineering. Then Hunter attended one of the many introductory workshops offered by 推荐正规买球平台 instructor Gary Beasley, who welcomes middle- and high-schoolers into his labs to learn about laser and photonics. It's an educational experience that, over the years, has turned into a marketing opportunity as well. Many students end up enrolling in the program after encountering lasers in his workshops, 很多人都是有生以来第一次.
"That workshop really got me interested and set me up for what I wanted to do,亨特说。. "Basically the thing that got me interested was the lasers, themselves. 我发现它们很有趣. The other thing was when Gary Beasley explained how it is a very needed field and has a good job market. 他很棒. 我真的很喜欢和他谈话."
比斯利回忆说，亨特参加了研讨会, but the high school student didn't make a particularly strong impression at first -- only because of his quiet nature. 亨特被录取后，一切都变了. 比斯利说，亨特是一个非常勤奋的学生, 一个总是愿意帮忙的人, 做额外的事, 不求任何回报.
Hunter credits his classroom experience for much of his success so far at Cree -- and not just for the technical information and manual skills. Problem solving is the core of his current work and that's a particular emphasis running through all of the laser and photonics classes offered by 推荐正规买球平台 lead instructor Beasley and his colleague John LaVere.
"It definitely surpassed what I expected and it was by far the best school experience I ever had,亨特说。, 回顾. "The atmosphere was good, my fellow students were really nice and the program was really interesting.
"Mr. LaVere和Mr. Beasley taught in an interesting way; they were some of the best teachers I ever had as well. 他们真诚地关心我们，关心我们生活中发生的事情. They personally helped us look for jobs and write our resumes, not just teaching."
光明的未来
For someone who hasn't even reached his 20th birthday and is in his first year on the job, it's almost absurd to start thinking about where Hunter could go in his brand-new career. But given his enthusiasm, work ethic and accomplishment so far, it's something worth considering.
奥斯汀·汉德利(Austin Handley)对此有一些看法, 他是工艺工程师，也是亨特在Cree公司的经理. He works with Hunter and the other technicians to maintain and improve manufacturing processes, 他相信这位年轻的同事前途无量.
"Andrew has been a great addition to our team here at Cree," he says. "As a process technician he handles multiple different responsibilities every day and has been able to learn and adapt quickly to meet the challenge. As he continues to grow in his position I believe there will be many opportunities for him to advance his professional career here."
亨特并没有想太多下一步该怎么做. 他说，他喜欢自己的工作，并希望在Cree获得更大的成长, a company that helps employees develop their skills and advance their education. 除此之外，很难这么快就想到未来. “说实话, 我想看看结果如何,他的回答坦率而完全可以理解. "I just graduated recently, so I'm not making any big decisions yet."
For more information on 中央卡罗莱纳社区学院 - which is dedicated to providing pathways to achievable dreams, 访问 www.预备.edu.
安德鲁·亨特是中央卡罗来纳社区学院的毕业生, now working at Cree -- one of America's top semiconductor manufacturers.