Workforce Blog: Championing New Pathways

At Micron, we’re building the future of technology, but we can’t do it without rethinking how we build our future workforce.

Thanks to federal initiatives, we are expanding our U.S. manufacturing footprint, which includes building up to six new fabs, modernizing and expanding facilities, and creating thousands of new jobs. As we confront this historic opportunity, we also face an urgent challenge.

The Semiconductor Industry Association estimates 67,000 technical roles may go unfilled by 2030 if we don’t make significant changes to how we source and hire for these roles. Nearly 40 percent of these unfilled positions will be for technicians, roles that typically require a two-year associate degree rather than a traditional four-year college education. In addition, there is an opportunity to strengthen semiconductor education and research at leading institutions around the world.

That’s why we are investing deeply in expanding our talent pipelines. This includes expanding our community college partnerships, building apprenticeship programs, enriching semiconductor university curricula and experiential learning programs, and engaging veterans, career changers, and others.
 

New Models

At Micron, we believe that opportunity should never be limited by a single path. Many of the best future technicians and engineers are already in our communities. We just need to meet them where they are and provide clear, supported pathways into our industry.

One way we’re doing this is by launching new apprenticeship models designed for talent who want to earn while they learn. Since Micron’s Registered Apprenticeship Program launched in November 2022, the program has reached 81 participants across the U.S. In August, we celebrated our first five apprentices who successfully completed the program, including Olivia Zierenberg. When Zierenberg discovered her desire for hands-on learning, she decided to give the Micron Registered Apprenticeship Program a try in its inaugural cohort. She enrolled at the College of Western Idaho, and now, two years later, she is a full-time Micron employee.

“It takes a lot of grit,” Zierenberg said. “No one is qualified until they are there. As much as school can teach, it’s never going to teach you as much as the actual on-the-job experience.”

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Micron has also built four Semiconductor University Networks—in the U.S., they are the Northwest, Northeast, and Minority Serving University Networks—and in partnership with Tokyo Electron (TEL), we created the UPWARDS for the Future Network, offering opportunities for students and faculty from 11 U.S. and Japanese universities. Our four networks share a common mission: to grow the semiconductor-ready workforce and research ecosystem while helping to strengthen the infrastructure at our university partners. These networks include 65 universities across the U.S. and Japan and will be a key source of future semiconductor-ready talent, filling full-time and intern engineering roles for years to come.

Our close partnership with universities and local and regional community colleges aligns curriculum with in-demand skills for semiconductor manufacturing. Our approach connects classroom learning with industry needs, ensuring that students graduate from universities or community colleges ready to excel in a fast-moving, technology-driven world. Through these partnerships, we work closely with faculty and administrators to enhance curricula, expand access to advanced equipment and facilities, and provide students with hands-on experiences that prepare them for rewarding careers.

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John Sly was a Micron technician and engineer in Virginia before becoming an instructor at Onondaga Community College (OCC) in Syracuse, N.Y., giving him a front-row seat to the developing partnership.

“I like to tell people we teach technicians but with a semiconductor flavor,” Sly said.

OCC students will soon have access to a first-of-its-kind cleanroom simulation lab equipped with Micron-donated manufacturing tools.
 

A Branching Pipeline

We also hosted a curriculum summit in partnership with the SEMI Foundation, bringing together over 140 educators from more than 50 universities and community colleges. The summit fostered deeper relationships and provided practical tools and frameworks to help institutions strengthen and implement semiconductor curricula within their academic programs.

In addition, we launched two innovative resources for educators: the Micron Educator Hub and Tech Talks. While the Educator Hub is available to all educators and students, the Tech Talks are available to partner universities. Both resources are structured to benefit higher education partners and students, providing relevant and current technical content related to semiconductor process fabrication, design, and other related topics.

Micron is committed to opening doors for veterans, too, through targeted outreach like our partnership with Syracuse University’s D’Aniello Institute for Veteran and Military Families (IVMF), SkillBridge, the Department of Labor’s HIRE Vets Medallion Program, and the U.S. Army Partnership for Your Success Program. The discipline, technical experience, and problem-solving skills gained through military service translate exceptionally well to advanced manufacturing careers.

These stories are just the beginning. Our goal is to prepare individuals for jobs today and open doors to long-term careers with growth, purpose and stability. Creating a strong pipeline is an investment in economic mobility, ensuring that the semiconductor industry draws from the full range of talent in the communities where we operate, and meeting our future workforce needs by increasing access to an industry that is excited to engage new talent.

The future of our industry depends on how well we broaden the definition of who belongs in it (answer: everyone!). If you’re a university student, a veteran, a technician in training, a parent returning to the workforce, or someone just beginning to explore a new path, Micron is building our future with you in mind. Come join us.

Melanie Lewis is the director of Workforce Strategies for Micron Technology in North America, leading initiatives to enable, attract, and hire Micron talent while expanding career pathways in the semiconductor industry.

Janine Rush-Byers has been with Micron for 24 years. As the director of the Global Strategic University Partnerships, she works with domestic and international universities to build strategic, long-term partnerships focusing on engineering programs, students, and faculty members with an emphasis to create equitable access.