Becoming an instructor

More thoughts from an old teacher,

Academics is a strange world. It is possible to find small rural community colleges that don’t require instructors to have academic credentials. I highly recommend that new teachers arrive with at least an associate degree in their craft. The pay scale is based upon your academic degrees and your teaching experience. No accounting for how fast you can inframe an engine or your electronic diagnostic skills. Promotion is based upon time in service, community and school service and academic work.

Most of the diesel instructors I work with are busting their butt working towards their next degree so they can get the next raise or tenure. That’s a whole mess in itself. Some Universities require you to have a terminal degree in 4 to 5 years. The last university I worked at was 5 years to get a BS degree. I watched a great Ford ASET Instructor get axed because he didn’t finish up his BS degree in time.

Teaching in Canada is much different. I belong to a organization comprised of diesel instructors. We are getting more and more Canadian teachers to join. It’s interesting to hear about the different challenges they experience. Since training is much more governmentally controlled in Canada. Redseal and all.

Like I mentioned, I’ve been teaching since 99. State College, University and for a large Caterpillar Dealer. The Cat gig was the funnest and payed the best. I recommend becoming a trainer for a equipment dealer. You get to teach, but don’t have to put up with the red tape and government bureaucracy of a institution. Just a thought.

So, after twenty years of teaching diesel and heavy equipment technology around the NW and Alaska, I have my own custom training and consulting company. There is solid need for that. Most of my requests are for safety/compliance and electrical diagnostics. Sometimes, engine diagnostics. Free-lance training is big. Car quest and NAPA hire contract trainers for the classes they provide.