Where Innovation and Education Meet: One Student’s Path to an Advanced Manufacturing Career

Blue Ridge Community College student Maria Aguilar Ramos in the Computer Integrated Machining lab. (Photo by Rich Keen, Marketing and Communications Dept.)

This article was first published in the 2022-2023 Annual Report.

After “feeling stuck” for several years in her job, Maria Aguilar Ramos discovered the Computer Integrated Machining program at Blue Ridge Community College. When she enrolled in the fall of 2022, she quickly learned that this training would be the ticket to her dream career.

She was anxious to learn something new, and found herself in the classroom with highly credentialed faculty who offered a wealth of industry expertise. All of her instructors came from the industry, and held years of experience in their fields.

As a student in one of the College’s advanced manufacturing pathways, Maria realized the significance of the training she was receiving.

“This program will pave the way for myself and others to find success with the innovative industries that are coming to the area,” Maria said. “They can’t survive without people like us to fill the open positions.”

Maria’s program will prepare her to obtain six national certifications – something that will set her apart when she begins applying for jobs. With the latest equipment and top-notch tools at her fingertips, she says she is developing a broad range of skills.

“We are learning fundamental manual processes, how to use multiple measurement instruments and computer programming,” she said. 

Maria credits the College’s reputation and convenient location as reasons for choosing Blue Ridge, but says the scholarship assistance was the deciding factor. 

“Blue Ridge gave me a scholarship,” she explained. “In the past, my access to financial aid options had been limited. This assistance from Blue Ridge is the only way I could’ve pursued this training.”

Learn more about the program at www.blueridge.edu/manufacturing.