Purdue, IU details new semiconductor initiatives
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Purdue University and Indiana University each announced initiatives on Wednesday to help bolster the workforce in semiconductors, a surging industry in the United States and Indiana.
Purdue announced plans to partner with SEMI, a leading global microelectronics industry association, to create online courses through its SEMI University.
IU announced plans to launch pilot programs to attract more women and other underrepresented populations to the semiconductor industry. The project is part of the EDGE Consortium, a national workforce education effort supported by a Defense Department workforce initiative called SCALE, which is led by Purdue.
“The SEMI University and Purdue partnership reflects the vital importance of aligning the semiconductor industry and academia on workforce development efforts,” SEMI University Director Naresh Naik said in a news release. “The online courses will help industry newcomers quickly develop needed skills for industry careers, and existing workers will have a convenient option to keep pace and upskill in this fast-evolving field.”
Under the partnership, Purdue faculty will develop online courses for SEMI University, an online learning platform for skilled semiconductor technicians. Purdue will issue digital badges certifying that learners have completed a course.
“This agreement to create and offer courses through SEMI U opens up yet another opportunity for Purdue to leverage its substantial expertise in microelectronics and semiconductors, contributing to the growth and improvement of the industry,” Dimitrios Peroulis, senior vice president for Purdue University Online, said in the release.
In Bloomington, the $2 million EDGE Consortium initiative with IU involves three pilot programs. One initiative is to help attract K-12 students to the field by producing learning materials and a series of videos for social media and PBS affiliates. A second initiative is to revise course materials and classroom experiences to better retain undergraduate students in science and technology fields. The third initiative is to develop training classes through Ivy Tech Community College and other partners suited for people who are not pursuing college degrees.
“Expanding the numbers and types of people pursuing careers in the semiconductor workforce is the only way we’re going to meet the nation’s demand for workers in this critical and expanding industry,” said IU President Pamela Whitten, co-chair of the EDGE Consortium. “This important work requires a concerted effort on the part of our nation’s leading research universities and IU is proud to be among those leading the charge.”
The pilot phase of the IU programs will be funded through 2026.
“The demand for workforce for the microelectronics industry is so great that our current population of STEM students is insufficient to meet it,” said Joanna Millunchick, dean of the IU Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering, who will be leading the pilot programs. “These new programs are designed to expand the pipeline by engaging women and other underrepresented populations, changing how we teach so that more students master the material, and supporting those who have committed to these fields so that they can be successful in their careers.”
The United States is expected to triple its semiconductor manufacturing capacity from 2022 to 2032, according to a May report by the Semiconductor Industry Association. The 203% growth is the largest projected percent increase in the world over that time.
Earlier this year in Indiana, South Korea-based semiconductor chipmaker SK Hynix Inc. announced plans to establish a nearly $4 billion advanced packaging fabrication and R&D facility for microelectronics in West Lafayette.