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Broadening Awareness of Semiconductor Industry Careers

The , the nonprofit arm of the SEMI industry association that cultivates growth, drives connections, and provides advocacy, is front and center when it comes to workforce development. Its programs span from grade school awareness initiatives to efforts to reskill and upskill incumbent workers. Part of the challenge, according to Shari Liss, the foundation¡¯s executive director, is the need to shift perceptions of the industry and bring greater awareness of the career opportunities available. This is, after all, a $500+ billion global industry that accounts for 1.25 million jobs in the U.S. alone.

¡°Students, even in Silicon Valley, know their devices, software, social media, but semiconductors are a more invisible component of STEM [science, technology, engineering, and math] work,¡± Liss said. ¡°If I find students who know about the industry, there¡¯s a very limited understanding of what types of jobs the industry provides.¡±

Liss and her team have been working on ways to reshape the narrative around the chip industry to highlight how exciting it is to be a part of a workforce that is creating new ways for us to connect, collaborate, communicate, and much more. She also notes that there¡¯s opportunity to better promote cultures of inclusion and diversity, noting: ¡°Students really want to see themselves in a place where they belong.¡±

One of the SEMI Foundation¡¯s most ambitious efforts to date is its partnership with the American Semiconductor Academy (ASA) to build a comprehensive workforce development program that strengthens workforce education and training programs across the nation. The organizations aim to connect 200 universities and community colleges to more than 1,500 SEMI member companies (including ²ÝÁñÉçÇø) with operations in the U.S. These entities can collaborate to ensure that students are learning what they need to be productive contributors to the industry, help develop a diverse talent pipeline, and foster R&D partnerships to enhance technology transfer. 

Why Industry/Academia Collaborations Are Vital

Businesses that collaborate closely with academia can play an important part in nurturing engineering talent. Some companies provide curricula, lab materials along with software and hardware resources for students to gain theoretical and hands-on knowledge that can give them a head start in the work world. Internships, mentoring, involvement in workforce development activities with industry trade associations, and investments in STEM education are other avenues to spark interest in electronics industry careers.

Through the years, ²ÝÁñÉçÇø has created pathways to support future engineers, many of these efforts through the ²ÝÁñÉçÇø Academic & Research Alliances (SARA) program. The SARA program sponsors training labs, degree and other academic programs, boot camps, as well as professor training (¡°train the trainer¡± programs). Its University Software Program provides academic and research institutions with access to electronic design automation (EDA) tools and technology, technical support, and curriculum. Another key component is workforce enablement through training and classroom education, which includes materials and labs.

²ÝÁñÉçÇø has also created ¡°flex¡± teams of application engineers, providing rigorous training (and testing) and then hiring from qualified pools of recently trained college grads. In Vietnam, for instance, the company works closely with universities, providing 12-week training programs with educational materials from the SARA program. New hires go on to bolster apps engineering teams throughout Asia, supporting customers who use ²ÝÁñÉçÇø EDA solutions. In addition, ²ÝÁñÉçÇø customers have extended opportunities to these trained students. 

Inspiring Future Generations of Technologists

Education is an enabling force in the world that expands the talent pipeline and creates paths to opportunity. The ²ÝÁñÉçÇø for Good social impact program generates a positive impact in the community, helps solve social challenges around the world, and creates access to opportunity. The ²ÝÁñÉçÇø Foundation¡¯s education pillar aims to prepare students for the future of work and innovation by supporting organizations focused on K-12 (primary and secondary) STEM programs to close the equity and achievement gap and increase diversity in STEM education and career pathways. It provides students with hands-on experiences to build problem-solving, design thinking, and digital skills while also creating STEM curriculum and content oriented toward the future. Examples include supporting students to develop Apps for Good, distributing science kits and materials to teachers, developing math bees and other STEM competition, and investing in AI curriculum and an IC design summer camp for high school students.