Improving educational programs for engineers in Mexico
Siemens VDO's engagement allows the demand for well-trained engineers to be better met in the future.
In the past, educational programs for engineers in Mexico have not lived up to the standards needed to keep up with worldwide research and development in the automotive industry. Siemens VDO, in collaboration with government agencies and universities, has succeeded in significantly improving the country’s professional education conditions for engineers. This will allow the demand for well-trained engineers to be better met in the future.
Mexico is currently exhibiting the best economic development in all of Latin America. The Mexican economy is characterized by increased industrialization. The automotive industry is proving to be the key driving force behind this trend, generating 5.1 percent of the gross domestic product and 21.9 percent of exports.
Due to an initiative of the former Siemens company Siemens VDO educational programs for engineers in Mexico have been significantly improved.
Well-trained specialists are a key requirement for the success of a country’s economy in the global marketplace. The same is true for businesses: The skills of the employees are a key to long-term economic success. In the past, however, educational programs for engineers in Mexico have not lived up to the standards needed to keep up with worldwide research and development. The low degree of real-world grounding and the excessively long training periods discouraged students from pursuing engineering.
Siemens VDO felt this as well: 3,018 employees work at the production facility in Guadalajara, and Siemens relies on well-trained specialists. Since current educational programs lack practical training, however, newly hired engineers had to pass an additional one-year in-house training period before they could take on their assigned duties - especially in the research and development department. Siemens VDO is therefore committed to improving career training for engineers while shortening the time for additional training.
Company specialists joined forces with representatives from the government, the chamber of commerce, universities and other businesses in the automotive supply industry to develop a three-pronged approach for improving educational programs for engineers: a theoretical portion with three training programs in electronics, a practical portion in a university training laboratory equipped by Siemens and on-the-job training through a company internship.
This approach improves the overall conditions for engineering studies in Mexico and was approved by the entire automotive supply industry. The concept even had a national impact when it was adopted as part of the Mexican government’s program to make the country more competitive.