Advanced Automotive Technology

Mercedes-Benz Corporate Partnership

Wallace State’s Advanced Automotive Technology programs boast a top-notch reputation with outstanding job placement rates, including a recent partnership with Mercedes-Benz U.S. International.  Through the Mercedes Tech Co-op Program, students can start a career at Mercedes during the summer, get tuition support from Mercedes while enrolled at Wallace State on the way to earning an Associate Degree in Automotive Service Technology!

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About the Program

The work of automotive service technicians and mechanics has evolved from mechanical repair to a high technology job. As a result, these workers are now usually called “technicians” in automotive services. Today, integrated electronic systems and complex computers run vehicles and measure their performance while on the road. Technicians must have an increasingly broad base of knowledge about how vehicles’ complex components work and interact, as well as the ability to work with electronic diagnostic equipment and computer-based technical reference materials while maintaining their skills with traditional hand tools.

The ability to diagnose the source of a problem quickly and accurately requires good reasoning ability and a thorough knowledge of automobiles. Many technicians consider diagnosing hard-to-find troubles one of their most challenging and satisfying duties.

Automotive technology is rapidly increasing in sophistication, and most training authorities strongly recommend that persons seeking automotive service technician and mechanic jobs complete an accredited formal training program like the one offered at Wallace State, which provides intensive career preparation through a combination of classroom instruction and hands-on practice. Courses in electronics, physics, chemistry, English, computers, and mathematics may provide a good educational foundation for entering such a program.

Career Outlook

Job opportunities in this occupation are expected to be very good for persons who complete automotive training programs as employers report difficulty in finding workers with the right skills. Persons with good diagnostic and problem-solving abilities, and whose training includes basic electronics and computer courses, should have the best opportunities. For well-prepared people with a technical background, automotive service technician careers offer an excellent opportunity for good pay and the satisfaction of highly skilled work with vehicles incorporating the latest in advanced technology.

According to a 2017 report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, hourly earnings of automotive service technicians and mechanics can reach more than $19.02 per hour, with salaries of more than $39,550.