Comments Off

By Admin, March 18, 2009

Raysa’s Ready to Work in the Field of Aircraft Maintenance

Raysa Abril in the Aerospace Centre at the Dawson Creek Campus of NLC.

DAWSON CREEK ~  Raysa Abril was 16 years old and did not speak English when she left her home in Colombia to experience life in Canada.  She enrolled in English as a Second Language courses for two years before deciding to follow in the footsteps of an uncle, who is a pilot and mechanic. Abril enrolled in the Aircraft Maintenance Engineering program at Northern Lights College.

I heard this was one of the best schools there is for Aircraft Maintenance Engineering”,  Abril said.  “Reputation is definitely one of the reasons why I decided to come to Dawson Creek. A lot of people recommended Northern Lights College. I definitely recommend it.” 

Abril, who is now 20, recently completed the 15-month program. She said that the program helped open her eyes to the various career options available and the skills required to succeed in the aircraft maintenance field.

For example, Abril said she expected a focus on the hands-on and mechanical aspects of the field. But she was very surprised by the emphasis placed on neat and organized files and paperwork. 

 ”The program has definitely given me a good basic understanding of what is necessary to succeed,”  Abril said. “It has opened more options to me. I learned about helicopters, and I even got some welding experience. The program makes you aware of a lot more possibilities.” 

Despite the importance of the work of aircraft mechanics in ensuring safe flights around the world, aircraft maintenance can be an underappreciated field because much of the work is done out of the public spotlight.

“It’s a field where everybody sees the pilots, but nobody sees all the people who work on the plane, ” Abril said.  “You get on a plane and it is ready to fly, but there’ s a whole world of people involved that no one knows about.”

The Aircraft Maintenance Engineering program at NLC is based in the Aerospace Centre at the Dawson Creek Campus. The program is 15 months in length, and the next intake of students starts in September. For more information or to register, call 250-782-5251 or 1-866-463-6652, and ask for a Recruiter.

Comments Off

By Admin, February 20, 2009

SD 59 students learn about Dual Credit at NLC
 

Aircraft Maintenance Engineering and Welding were two of NLC’s Dual Credit programs available to School District 59 students during the Feb. 18 YES-2-IT event at the Dawson Creek Campus.

DAWSON CREEK – Approximately 160 grades 9-10 students from throughout School District 59 had the opportunity to sample Dual Credit programming available at Northern Lights College.
 
The students visited NLC’s Dawson Creek and South Peace campuses on Feb. 18 for the annual YES-2-IT (Youth Exploring Skills to Industry Training) event.
 
The event allows the students to learn about Dual Credit programs available in Dawson Creek or through distributed delivery.
 
“YES-2-IT is a chance for students to take information home so that parents know more about what Dual Credit is,” said Lorelee Friesen, recruiter for the Dawson Creek Campus, and organizer of the event. “They learn which programs are available for Dual Credit, and they get important information on the prerequisite courses needed in secondary school to qualify.”
 
A unique aspect of YES-2-IT is its focus on hands-on involvement, as students are encouraged to try out aspects of their selected programs through activities that are developed and overseen by the program instructors specifically for this event.
 
For example, students built birdhouses in Carpentry/Residential Construction, tried different types of welding, completed a drawing in Visual and Graphic Communication Arts, tried hair dying in Hairstylist/Cosmetology, took apart a computer in Northern Collaborative Information Technology, or sat in a helicopter cockpit in Aircraft Maintenance Engineering.
 
Hands-on participation has increased in the past two years, thanks to contributions from EnCana and the Industry Training Authority (ITA).
 
Last year, steel-toed, slip-on safety shoes were purchased by EnCana to allow students greater access to trades’ shops. This year, sponsorship from EnCana and the ITA allowed the purchase of hard hats, gloves and welding smocks, thereby allowing even more hands-on involvement. Each student also got an event t-shirt, thanks to sponsorship from Northern Opportunities.
 
“Students would not be able to participate in an interactive way without the generosity of our sponsors. We would only be able to offer tours,” said recruiting manager Kristina Van De Walle. “Safety equipment is key to the success of the event but incredibly expensive when you look at the cost of purchasing it for so many students. Thanks to EnCana and the Industry Training Authority this interactivity is a reality.”
 
The safety equipment will be used at other YES-2-IT events this year in Fort Nelson on March 4 and Fort St. John on March 11, as well as in future years.
 
Dual Credit programming allows secondary school students to enrol in certain College programs, and earn credits at both levels, while still in secondary school.
 
Other Dual Credit programs that were featured included: Automotive Service Technician, Heavy Duty/Commercial Transport Technician, Applied Business Technology, Social Services Worker Diploma, Esthetics and Nail Care Technology, Early Childhood Education, Plumbing, Millwright, and Home Support/Resident Care Attendant.
 
For more information on Dual Credit programs, secondary school students should contact their school counselor. For information on NLC programming, contact the College at 1-866-463-6652 or 250-782-5251.