Beaufort County Community College will hold an open house in conjunction with National Advanced Manufacturing Week on Thursday. The open house will take place in Building 4 from 5-7 p.m.

Advanced manufacturing involves using technology to improve products, processes and procedures in the manufacturing process. BCCC will to highlight a number of career- and technical-education programs it offers. Potential students can find out more about information technology, electrical/electronic engineering, mechanical engineering and welding. Additionally, other program areas in the Division of Business and Industry will be available for interested students. These include agribusiness, automotive, business, cosmetology, medical lab technology and medical office administration.

“This is a chance for potential students to find out career opportunities in the manufacturing field and ask questions about the differences between programs,” said Ben Morris, dean of the Division of Business and Industry. “Students can see which program aligns best with their interests and talents. Many of these fields are changing very quickly due to the introduction of new technologies. We think of them as being male-dominated, but this is changing. A technician in this field will spend far more time designing products and programming servers and machines than melting metal.”

BCCC prepares students for advanced manufacturing jobs through connections to local employers, and by offering technology that matches what students will find in the field. The college was recently awarded a grant to equip its mechatronics program.

Faculty members in the advanced manufacturing programs often have students lined up with positions before they graduate from BCCC.

There will also be a number of displays both static and interactive. Students can tour labs and classrooms, seeing the latest technologies with which they would be working. Past graduates will be on hand to share their experiences in the program and out in the workforce.