Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Motive Power Technician Program Opens Door to Further Study or Rewarding Career

"The Motive Power Technician program - Technical program will prepare all students for a career in the automotive field," says an instructor in the program offered at Toronto's Centennial College. "We actually have labs that include our transmission lab, our engine lab, fuels, electrical, electronics, and our chassis systems. We train our students for a number of career opportunities once they leave here. We open a lot of doors." Meanwhile another instructor adds, “Many of our students end up back at Centennial College, either in body work or mechanical. Some of them go onto dealerships to work at part departments and that sort of thing."



While these insights offer a great general overview of the Motive Power Technician program, which is accredited by the Canadian Automotive Repair and Service (CARS) National Accreditation Board, let’s take a closer look at some of the standout details and features. First and foremost, applicants to the Motive Power Technician (Automotive) - Technical program, must have completed at minimum an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent or are 19 years of age or older. They must also obtain the compulsory English 12C or U credit or skills assessment, or equivalent and the Math 11M or U, or 12C or U or skills assessment, or equivalent. However, it should be noted that possession of minimum admission requirements does not guarantee admission to the program.




The emphasis of this motor vehicle technician program is on motor vehicle technology, which is taught through a combination of theory and practical training. Students are based in Ashtonbee Campus, which houses the largest transportation training centre in the province of Ontario and the labs mentioned by the instructor. These labs are equipped with cars, car parts and the most up-to-date tools that are found in the industry.




Taking two years to complete, the first semester of Motive Vehicle Technician sees students participate in courses that are common to both the administration and technical streams. This allows them to determine which aspect of the industry is better suited for then. Among the topics covered in this first semester are: applied mechanics, engines, transmissions, fuels, alignment, vehicle technology, mathematics and more. Meanwhile, the second semester sees a focus on component design and includes topics such as transportation administration, applied vehicle dynamics, and higher levels of topics offered in the first semester. The last two semesters concern themselves with the highest level of topics such as engines, alignment, transmission and others such as air conditioning, technical drawings, properties of materials and more.



All of the in-school content taught in this motor vehicle technician program is the same as the Automotive Service Technician (AST) apprenticeship qualification. This ensures students are prepared to enter the industry as well as be successful on exemption testing for licensing qualification. Students who decide to pursue a career upon completing the motor vehicle technician program can apply for jobs as automotive apprentices, service advisors, lead hands, repair technicians, automotive service and parts management or automotive import/ export.

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