BCIT will join some Lions this weekend to help give middle and high school students a head start in their careers.
The BC Lions’ Skills for Life Summit gathers grade 7-9 students from every region in the province. It brings them together to discuss important life skills, from teamwork to how to speak out against bullying and sexual harassment.
It will also feature interactive demonstrations of promising professions, giving students a chance to try out BC’s most in-demand jobs.
Arguably the best ‘try out’ will come from the BCIT Heavy Equipment Operator simulator trailer—a mobile trailer kitted out with four different CAT simulators: an excavator, a bulldozer, a front-end loader, and an articulated truck.
“We’re going to take the trailer down so the students can come through and try out a career choice,” says instructor Bruce Thomson. “They’ll get to sit in the seat, give it a whirl to see if this is something you might like.”
Heavy Equipment Operators are in high demand—”We are in desperate need,” says Bruce, “especially in the lower mainland. There’s not a lot of this training available, and there’s a lot of retirement coming up soon. We need to replace those retirees with well-trained students.”
The summit happens this weekend.
You can follow it through the hashtag #bclionsS4L.
If you are curious about becoming a Heavy Equipment Operator, consider the Intro to HEO course at BCIT. It’s a three-day immersion into the field, a great way to figure out whether it’s a fit for you.