Production line: medical innovations pathways program is helping assemble a workforce.

• Author: Felix, Devin
• Position: Technology

Utah's medical device industry is growing quickly--so quickly that it threatens to outpace the state's ability to provide enough workers to fill the skilled jobs the industry requires. Yet if you ask a group of Utah high school students what they plan to do after graduation, it's likely that few will even know that a job with biotechnology or medical manufacturing is an option.

A new program hopes to change that--and open doors to well-paying careers for thousands of young Utahns in the process.

The Medical Innovations Pathways (MIP) program is a joint effort between school districts, Salt Lake Community College (SLCC), the Governor's Office of Economic Development (GOED) and several Utah companies. Here's how the year-long program works:

1. High school students spend the first semester taking classes in their schools to introduce the basic science, engineering, and technology information and skills that are necessary in the medical devices industry.

2. They spend the next semester in classes developed by SLCC, where they get more in-depth training on the topic.

3. Meanwhile, they are paired with one of the more than a dozen medical device companies in the program, where they get direct experience through an internship or job shadow experience.

4. After the students graduate, they have the chance to interview for work at the companies involved in the program. If they're hired, they'll earn what GOED refers to as "family-sustaining wage."

The program is now in its first year. So far, only 20 students are enrolled, all from the Granite School District, but plans are in place to expand to the Davis and Canyons school districts next school year and bring the total number of students up to 60, says Kimberlee Carlile, Pathways program manager for GOED. From there, organizers expect the numbers of school districts and students to keep growing.

Manufacturing a workforce

According to the Economic Development Corporation of Utah, the number of manufacturing jobs in the state has grown by 11 percent over past five years. Meanwhile, medical equipment manufacturing jobs increased by 27 percent during that same time period.

Filling those jobs presents a challenge for many companies in Utah, which struggle to find enough qualified candidates for both entry-level jobs, as well as those jobs that require more advanced training and experience.

"We've got great life sciences companies, but if we can't crack the workforce issues, these companies aren't going to...