If you’re talking bachelor’s degree and automotive technology . . . you’re pretty much talking about an engineering degree or maybe a degree in business
That’s the reality of it . . . guys turning wrenches don’t get a bachelor’s degree in automotive technology
The shop foreman or owner, on the other hand, might very well have a bachelor’s degree in some field
Not to be a sourpuss, but I’ve worked alongside fellow mechanics who DID have a bachelor’s degree in various things . . . not automotive, though . . . and they were wrenching because there were either no job openings in their chosen field, it didn’t pay as much as they were hoping, work was inconsistent, they couldn’t cut it, and various other reasons
As far as body work, courses related to it are needed,. Welding, sheet metal, and painting may all be available. These are usually vocational courses rather than degree courses. After that, yes, much is OJT.
Automotive maintenance is a combination of education and hands on learning. I have 2 degrees in engineering and worked in the automotive industry of over 2 decades. I can read a service manual about how to identify the worn or broken part, remove it and replace it with new. I can tighten it to the proper torque and move on. I can teach myself these things and did.
This is all well and good until things don’t go as the book has it planned. There’s where a lot of learning takes place, often from people with far more hands-on experience than I had. You can’t learn to be an artist or a carpenter, or a mason from books. You have to learn from those who have done it with their own hands. The techs, toolmakers, mechanics and every other trades that crossed my path taught me things I couldn’t possibly learn from books or even a YouTube video.
How to remove a rusty bolt without breaking it. How to press fit things together without cocking them up. How to use your fingers to detect vibration, your nose to identify what is leaking and your ears to identify a bearing ready to fail. How to make a tool you don’t own to re-assemble parts in your driveway with stuff from the hardware store. This stuff isn’t in the book but it will make or break the job.
As far as body work goes, it is far more an art than a science. If you can feel the bump, you can’t paint over it, period. If you make it smooth and make the primer run, you still can’t paint it. If you make the paint run, bubble, fish-eye or even get the metal flake laying in the wrong direction, you must do it over. The only way to learn body work is to DO body work!
I really don’t understand the need for Bachelor degree . Are you really going to work in the field ?
The place we take our Volvo to has 2 mechanics with years of experience and they both have been to several Volvo training courses . No advanced degrees but what they might not be able to repair they have access to Volvo for guidance.
Unless a person really needs this course and it is not online but in person it might be to risky because of this terrible Covid 19 that is surging out of control.
A 10 month automotive certificate program to prepare students for entry-level mechanic positions.
A 2-year Associates degree program in automotive technology. You spend half your time in class and half in the shop getting hands-on repair experience. You graduate with a respectable amount of training, (both hands-on experience and theory of operation).
A 4-year Bachelors degree in Automotive management. You get all the training from the above 2-year program, plus auto industry management related courses. It’s designed for those interested in management careers in the automotive and related industries.
I graduated from their 2-year program many years ago. It was a top notch program back then. I’ve recently reconnected with the school and understand it’s still a well respected program today.
As others have noted, if your interest is in auto repair, a 4-year degree is not what you’re looking for.
There’s also one other factor to consider and it applies to areas other than auto repair also. There are some people who just do not have a knack for diagnosing or repairing an automotive mechanical problem.
They could go to school for 30 years, end up with a large crate full of degrees, and still not get it. One guy I worked with fit that mold perfectly. He could not do one repair of any sort without extreme frustration and cursing. Even simple oil changes (all of them) would set him off every time. Everyone in the shop wanted him gone rather than listen to his non-stop tirades and at some point he was gone.
I also like learning new things on an ongoing basis. When I retired from the school system–after enduring years of increasing violence in the school–instead of either taking a job that was under the umbrella of my existing degrees or just puttering around the house–I decided to go back to college… again… in order to have yet another career, as a Certified Paralegal.
Because I already held a B.A. and an M.A., I didn’t have to take every course that was supposedly required for the Paralegal degree, but I decided that I wasn’t running a race, and I took my time, even with a reduced course load. In the process, in addition to learning what I needed to know about the legal system, I also gained new skills related to computer technology. And, even though everything that they required me to take was “new” for my aging mind, I managed to graduate as the top-ranked student in the Paralegal Program.
The toughest course was Torts, and the all-essay exam was a killer. I filled 6 Blue Books with my answers, and then we all sweated until the professor announced the results the following week. As the students–who were all in their late teens or early 20s–clamored for the exam results, the professor–with a big smile on his face–announced that “the old guy sitting over there is the only person who ever achieved a perfect score on my Torts exam”.
Challenging one’s brain is a rewarding process, and as we age it even helps us to maintain our mental functions.
I can understand a guy getting a little frustrated doing a complete rear brake job . . . drums, shoes, hardware, all the seals, plus adjustment(s) on a dually. It’s a lot of work and that’s a fact, not an opinion
But for a guy to get frustrated on each and every oil change is ridiculous, in my opinion. There’s only so many cross-threaded drain plugs and overtightened oil filters. Most oil changes aren’t even worth talking about
When I was going to college it was guys like you that made us sweat when the tests were graded on the curve. Motivated, interested, experienced and disciplined is tough for a 19 year old to compete against!