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Why Plastics Engineering Technology

Why Plastics Engineering Technology

Why Choose Plastics Engineering Technology?

Ferris’ plastics program has a proven track record of providing graduates with opportunities. For more than 50 years we have been providing not only great career opportunities, but opportunities to make a difference in the world.

By looking at simple supply (number of graduates) and demand (available jobs), it’s easy to see why our students are in such high demand. There are more than 15,000 plastics manufacturing establishments in the US alone. With only a handful of plastics engineering technology programs in the country, companies consistently look to Ferris for graduates who can hit the ground running.

According to a Plastics Industry Association report, Michigan ranks first for plastics employment concentration with 16 out of every 1,000 non-farm employees working in the plastics industry. Michigan ranks fourth for total plastics employment with more than 71,000 employees (just behind California, Ohio, and Texas). Ferris has Michigan's only B.S. in Plastics Engineering Technology, thus our plastics graduates are heavily recruited by the industry. Ferris graduates gain immediate status as recognized technical leaders.

Graduates from our program also have opportunities to make a difference in the world. Many negative social media and marketing campaigns directed at plastics have gotten a lot of attention recently. Often there is misleading and sometimes blatantly false information presented. The plastics industry is still relatively young and certainly has some issues but plastics are almost always more environmentally friendly than competing materials (due to how lightweight and strong they are – think about how heavy a car would be without any plastic…). The people who are going to solve the tough issues are the ones who have technical knowledge and can truly understand the problems.

Our graduates have opportunities in a wide range of industries, since nearly every industry utilizes plastics. Go to any hospital and you’ll see nearly everything includes plastic components. During the COVID-19 pandemic the plastics industry stepped up and provided lifesaving PPE around the world. Through industry support, our lab was able to acquire an injection mold which made face shields for tens of thousands of front line and essential workers.

READY TO CHECK IT OUT?

We'd love to show you around and tell you more about the plastics program! To schedule a personal tour with one of our faculty members, reach out to our program coordinator, Marc Guske.