Community colleges rush to expand semiconductor training as labor shortage looms US chip industry

Arizona is expected to be among the states facing the most severe semiconductor worker shortages, a challenge that could affect the industry’s expansion across the state and the broader effort to bring advanced chip production to the United States. Community colleges are responding with shorter, hands-on programs intended to move people into entry-level manufacturing jobs quickly, including positions maintaining and servicing the specialized equipment used in fabrication plants.

The need is being driven by a large wave of investment following the 2022 CHIPS Act, the federal law designed to increase domestic semiconductor production. Chipmakers have committed more than $800 billion to new fabrication facilities in the United States, but the construction of plants is moving faster than the development of the workforce needed to operate them. Shari Liss, who oversees talent initiatives for the semiconductor industry group SEMI, said the country could be short as many as 157,000 full-time workers by 2030.

Arizona is one of five states identified as likely to experience the most acute shortages, along with Texas, Ohio, California and New York. The lack of workers could slow production schedules and undermine the country’s goal of becoming a stronger force in artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies. For Tucson residents, the issue is unfolding within the state’s growing technology economy, particularly as major projects in the Phoenix area create demand for technicians, engineers and workers with specialized manufacturing skills.

One example is Ethan Mock, who spent years working part time at a gym while completing a business administration degree at Northern Arizona University and taking on more than $100,000 in debt. During his final year, he heard about a tuition-free semiconductor course at Rio Salado College and enrolled despite having no experience in the field. The three-month program offered students an opportunity to interview with major chipmakers in Arizona, giving Mock a possible route into a new career without taking on additional education costs.

Within two months, Mock was wearing protective equipment and using machinery in a laboratory to practice processes involved in turning thin silicon wafers into chips used in smartphones, robotics and data centers. His classmates included a 64-year-old middle school teacher, a software developer in his 50s who had recently lost his job, gig workers without college degrees and younger people looking for an alternative to a traditional four-year path. Their varied backgrounds reflect the workforce community colleges are trying to reach as the industry expands.

Rio Salado’s public program began this fall after the college consulted with companies including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Intel. The 12-week course builds on a semiconductor education effort that began at the college about 15 years ago, when no community college in Arizona offered chip manufacturing programs and Intel required an associate degree for entry-level positions. Veterans had already been served through an earlier version of the intensive training for four years.

Students first learn fabrication procedures with virtual reality equipment, then complete about 20 hours of practical instruction in Arizona State University clean rooms. They work in full protective suits and goggles designed to keep particles away from equipment and raw materials. ASU electrical engineering professor Trevor Thornton said expanding access to those facilities allows community college students to practice the careful procedures required in advanced manufacturing. Some students may eventually continue into engineering programs at ASU.

The model is spreading nationally. Austin Community College, West Valley College in Saratoga, California, and other schools offer short programs that can lead to interviews with semiconductor companies. SEMI says more than 200 community colleges and universities have coordinated with the organization to prepare workers as new plants come online. Federal agencies, including the National Science Foundation, along with manufacturers such as TSMC, Samsung and SK Hynix, are helping schools purchase equipment, develop courses and focus instruction on the skills companies say they need most.

The training is intended to create a faster route to well-paying local jobs, and Rio Salado reports that about 75 percent of its graduates have obtained semiconductor-related work. Still, it remains uncertain whether these programs can expand quickly enough to meet demand. Companies are recruiting locally while also bringing hundreds of experienced engineers and technicians from Taiwan and South Korea to help start facilities in Arizona, Texas and Indiana. Pearl Chang Esau, an education and workforce consultant for TSMC Arizona, said those employees are coming to train American workers.

TSMC’s development in northern Phoenix, described as the largest foreign direct investment in United States history, is expected to produce 25,000 jobs over roughly the next decade, according to Chang Esau. About half are projected to be filled by technicians hired locally. The company’s project, along with supporting businesses moving into the region, is making the need for Arizona workers more immediate. TSMC’s advanced production plans are also part of a larger shift, since much of that manufacturing has historically taken place in Asia.

For people considering a career change, the programs emphasize that semiconductor work requires more than technical familiarity. Students are taught to prioritize precision, safety and reliability because fabrication plants depend on hundreds of tightly controlled steps to build microscopic layers and connections on silicon wafers. Mock said he was considering beginning as a technician and later combining that practical experience with his college degree. As Arizona’s chip industry grows, community colleges are betting that short, focused training can help residents enter the field before the labor shortage becomes a barrier to the state’s ambitious expansion.