5 Reasons You Should Consider a Career in Advanced Manufacturing
Today’s advanced manufacturing sector is thriving in New Jersey. The industry contains many excellent pathways for students to launch well-paid, exciting careers and remains a great choice for people that want a technical career path in a collaborative, team-oriented environment. Currently, there are significant shortages in New Jersey’s talent pipeline, leaving many good-paying jobs unfilled. Unfortunately, outdated perceptions of manufacturing as dirty or dangerous persist, and this is causing many students and young workers to pass up good opportunities in the industry. Here are five reasons why students who want a technical, high-paying career path with ample opportunity for advancement should consider advanced manufacturing.
1. Modern Manufacturing is High Tech, Clean, and Collaborative
While some people may think manufacturing is dull or labor intensive, improvements in technology have revolutionized the manufacturing sector. Today, employees in advanced manufacturing oversee computer-automated machines, use robots and tools that work with ultra-high precision, and are part of collaborative teams that solve complex problems in safe and clean work environments. Whether working with new chemical processes, medical devices, or aerospace parts, the men and women who work in the industry are highly skilled and highly paid.
2. New Jersey is a Leader in Advanced Manufacturing, and the Sector is Growing
New Jersey is a top state with respect to manufacturing employment and economic output. According to NJMEP, New Jersey’s advanced manufacturing firms employ more than 160,000 people statewide. Manufacturing is a $38 billion industry, and New Jersey is a leader in the manufacturing of electronics, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, foods, and flavors, as well as being a major defense contractor. As the sector expands, the number of new opportunities grows, and manufacturing companies have an increasing need for workers with a variety of skills, including accounting, data analytics, robotics and automation, engineering, programming, and coding. There are also many openings for high skill positions like machinists, welders, quality control experts, and those familiar with the emerging technologies of additive manufacturing and 3D printing. Given the industry’s size and breadth, employees can have the choice of working for a large multinational corporation, or one of the thousands of smaller companies where they can gain experience in multiple roles and grow their skills base.
3. Manufacturers Support Their Employees to Grow Their Skills and Employees Can Launch Careers without a College Degree
Many manufacturing jobs are among the highest paid in New Jersey, averaging over $80,000 a year. In fact, New Jersey manufacturing wages are 18% higher than wages paid to employees in the finance, insurance, and real estate fields, and 24% higher than the average national manufacturing wage. These jobs are also accessible. There are many on-ramps to a career in manufacturing that do not require a college degree and many employers will pay for continuing education to build the skills they need to compete in the global manufacturing ecosystem. Manufacturers are willing to support employees who have a desire to learn and add new credentials and skills by partnering with county vocational-technical schools, community colleges, and four-year institutions to offer apprenticeships, internships, certifications, associate degrees, 4-year degrees, and post-graduate credentials to help employees advance in their career.
4. Manufacturing Provides Great Opportunities for Women
Women make up more than 35% of the manufacturing talent pool and they fill a variety of roles across the skills spectrum such as managers, engineers, machinists, and welders. Women in manufacturing celebrate the industry as interesting and rewarding, and many cite opportunities for challenging assignments as a top reason they stay in the industry.
5. Robotics is Creating Many New Career Opportunities in Manufacturing
Robots are transforming manufacturing. This emerging technology is making manufacturing a top-tier career choice for students that have interest in the rapidly growing fields of robotics, automation, and artificial intelligence. Many predict that robots and automation will promote a new golden age of manufacturing in the United States, and New Jersey in particular, and while robotics will eliminate many of the more mundane roles in manufacturing, it will require new employees to select, configure, program, and repair robots and high-performance automation systems.
Students interested in learning learn more about careers in manufacturing should explore the New Jersey Manufacturing Extension Program and the Society of Manufacturing Engineers.
Lou Manzione, Melanie Willoughby, Patricia Cubero, and Elissa Santo contributed to this piece.
