BSC will begin offering Instrumentation and Control Technology, a new two-year program, in the fall.

Students in the program will begin with courses in Electronics Technology for the first year of the Instrumentation & Control (I&C) program. The second-year courses in I&C will begin in the fall of 2009.

Dr. Wayne Boekes, provost and vice president for academic affairs, said representatives from North Dakota’s energy industry requested that BSC develop this program to help meet the growing need for skilled instrumentation and control technicians in North Dakota‘s power plants, ethanol plants and other process plants.

Graduates will also have job opportunities with manufacturers of appliances, medical equipment, or others industrial sites in which automated systems are used.

“This is another example of BSC responding to industry’s requests, and of how partnerships work to solve workforce issues,” said Dr. Boekes. “We do what we can to support industry requests, and they respond by assisting us with what the curriculum should look like. They also donate time serving on advisory committees and with donations of equipment and funds.”

An advisory committee consisting of area instrumentation and control technicians and managers began meeting with BSC in 2004 to discuss curriculum, instructional materials, equipment, and other program needs, Dr. Boekes said.

Students in the program will gain the skills and knowledge to install, repair, upgrade, maintain and troubleshoot instrumentation and control systems. They will earn an associate in applied science degree or a diploma upon successful completion of the program. BSC is the only college in the North Dakota University System offering this program.