WCJC approved to offer nuclear degree program

Wharton County Junior College has been granted approval to award the Associate in Applied Science degree in Nuclear Power Technology by theTexas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Also approved is an enhanced skills certificate in nuclear power technology linked to the Associate in Applied Science degree in Process Technology.

WCJC's Bay City campus offers classes for associate degrees in both nuclear power technology and process technology. The new campus, located at 4000 Ave. F., opened August 2007.

The approval "couldn't have come at a better time," said Clarence Fenner, workforce development coordinator for STP Nuclear Operating Company in Matagorda County. "It's a significant milestone in our partnered efforts to train a qualified and technically competent workforce that will meet our present and emerging needs."

Through its educational incentive program, STP is paying tuition, fees and a monthly stipend for 60 qualified candidates to study nuclear power technology on a full-time basis starting this fall. The majority of the recipients will attend WCJC, according to Steve Sieben, WCJC's director of nuclear power technology and former STP employee and consultant.

"Our nuclear power technology degree is designed primarily for students with little or no college," Sieben said. "The enhanced skills certificate in nuclear power technology will help someone who already holds a process technology degree broaden their employment horizons. They can earn this certificate by taking just three nuclear power technology classes totaling 11 semester hours."

WCJC President Betty McCrohan said approval of the nuclear power technology degree and enhanced skills certificate is right on target with the college's mission to benefit the community as well as students.

"The nuclear power technology degree and enhanced skills certificate program will give Gulf Coast residents the necessary skills for high paying jobs while supporting the area's nuclear power industry in its quest to hire hundreds of new workers to staff planned expansions and to replace retiring employees."

For the summer terms, WCJC Bay City will offer Nuclear Fundamentals I and II (NUCP 1370 and NUCP1470) - two of the three classes needed for the enhanced skills certificate. This fall, the Bay City campus will expand its course offerings so students may earn more of the 20 courses required to earn the two-year Associate in Applied Science degree in Nuclear Power Technology. Those new course offerings include Introductory Chemistry (CHEM 1405), Precalculus (MATH 2312) and Business Computer Applications (BCIS 1305).

Sieben said there has been "a lot of interest" in WCJC's nuclear power technology program with calls coming in "from all over Texas and from other states too."

The majority of employees in the nuclear power generating industry are technical workers. Job titles for those with two-year associate degrees include electricians, mechanics, radiation protection technicians, chemical technicians, instrumentation and controls technicians, material handlers and operators. Their starting pay is $18 to $22 per hour and rises to as much as $32 an hour following a two- to three-year apprenticeship.

For additional information visit www.wcjc.edu and select Nuclear Power Technology from the Educational Programs Quick Jump pull-down menu on the home page. Interested students may also contact Sieben at (979) 244-4666.