“I saw this was happening and I felt like I needed to be here because I want to be prepared for the future,” said Krysten Holmes, a fifth-year Ohio State student studying Integrated System Engineering. “Seeing all the different companies makes me feel there is a niche for everyone here to be successful.”
Ohio was still abuzz about the recent solar eclipse that crossed the state the day before when things really started to hum at Ohio State University as it enthusiastically welcomed Semiconductor Day back to campus on April 9. The event is modeled after the SEMI Americas Professional Development Seminar (PDS), a program that mobilizes chip industry professionals to visit U.S. college campuses to educate students about career opportunities in the semiconductor ecosystem. Semiconductor Day coincided with a SEMI Midwest Forum and Ohio State’s annual engineering career fair the next day
Last year’s Semiconductor Day came on the heels of the Intel announcement to build a mega fab in New Albany, Ohio, dubbed Silicon Heartland. This year’s event, organized by the SEMI Foundation, educated college students on the vast global semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem, the vital importance of chips to how people work and live, and the abundant career opportunities in the industry.
More than 400 students from disciplines including electrical and computer engineering, materials science and physics, and as diverse as business and psychology, attended Semiconductor Day. Most attending the event were from Ohio State, although students, faculty, and guests from other Ohio schools, including a group from Dublin City Public High School, also participated.
Part networking fair, part industry awareness fair, the event layout was redesigned to make it easier for students to network with professionals from SEMI member companies. The four-hour program featured presentations by industry professionals in the A Day in the Life’ theater, Ask an Expert (formerly flash mentoring), resume reviews, food, games, and prizes.
Returning sponsors included Advantest, Applied Materials, Athinia, Brewer Science, EMD Electronics, Intel, KLA, Nikon Precision, Silfex (a Lam Research Company), SSOE, TEL and Tosoh SMD. They were joined this year by ASML and Entegris. OneColumbus represented local business development at the event.
Following opening remarks by Alissa Comella, Associate Vice President, Corporate Partnerships at Ohio State, and a brief presentation by Dr. Tyler Grassman, Associate Professor in the Department of Materials Science & Engineering at Ohio State, about the school’s new semiconductor minors and certificates, students fanned out throughout the ballroom to meet with industry professionals, have their resumes reviewed, and learn about what it’s like to work in semiconductors.
In the Day in a Life theater, Jennifer Braggin, Director of Technology at Entegris, shared her career journey, which included a two-year technical assignment at imec. She and her colleagues also provided career guidance and reviewed student resumes.
“During the event, I was overwhelmed by a sense of the strength of our industry recognizing the need for diversity,” Braggin said. “Students from all disciplines including engineering and arts and sciences were all eager to learn where they could fit in the industry. Talking to each of them made me realize just how diverse our industry’s needs are and how that diversity drives our continued innovation.”
Sophia Rogalskyj, a Product Marketing Engineer at TEL who attended the event for the first time, said the event "was an absolute blast! I go to a few career fairs each year and they’re so robotic, with maybe two minutes to spend with each student. This event was fun and more engaging because I had real conversations with each student I met. It was nice not to be head-hunting, but to be giving advice and guidance to students."
“I had heard about the growth in the nation's semiconductor industry, and I knew Semiconductor Day was just what I needed," said Antonia Akoto-Yeboah, an Ohio State sophomore majoring in materials science and engineering. "I was provided with much needed new connections, insights into a possible new future for me, and a drive to contribute to the industry’s growth.”
Students were excited to learn more about chip industry careers and network with professionals. While Intel was familiar to most students, many appreciated learning about other SEMI member companies and their importance to the semiconductor ecosystem.
“We appreciate the SEMI Foundation and all the participating companies leading the effort to educate and attract the future semiconductor workforce for the Silicon Heartland,” Comella said. “Events like these highlight the university’s commitment to preparing students for success in the rapidly evolving field of technology.”
Discover the benefits of SEMI Workforce Development initiatives or become involved by contacting us at semifoundation@semi.org.
Margaret Kindling is senior program manager of DEI at the SEMI Foundation. In addition to Semiconductor Day, she manages Women in Semiconductors, Semiconductor PRIDE and WFD programming at SEMICON West.