An aptitude test at Greenville Tech led Reuben Duren an opportunity to put his education to work.
Unsure of what he wanted to do, Duren worked construction jobs for several years and got involved in wiring work at a local factory. The automated machines he worked with interested him, so Duren went to Greenville Technical College and took an aptitude test, which indicated potential for engineering careers.
By 2001, Duren had enrolled at Greenville Tech, eventually landing in the Mechanical Engineering Technology (MET) program.
But even though he had found the right educational path, it would be some time before he came to the end of it because he joined the South Carolina Army National Guard, service that led to several interruptions in his academic career. As he neared graduation, he was deployed for 15 months. Part of his MET senior project was completed in Afghanistan and presented for a final grade when he returned home.
After Greenville Tech, Duren enrolled at USC Upstate, transferring all of his MET credits into a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering Technology Management.
Finishing that degree in 2010, he found a soft job market and limited opportunities for new graduates, so he went back to the military, completing training for helicopter pilots. When he returned to the Upstate in May, the economy had improved and he once again looked for an opportunity to use his education in a manufacturing environment.
This time, his perseverance paid off, and Duren began work last month at Associated Fuel Pump Systems Corporation (AFCO) in Anderson, a joint venture between Robert Bosch GmbH and DENSO producing automotive products and high pressure, turbine type, electric fuel pumps. He serves as a paid intern, working 40 hours a week. The position is expected to last seven months, and Duren hopes that it will lead to a permanent job.
As an intern, Duren is being exposed to process improvement and waste reduction in the manufacturing process along with managing the efficiency of the people who put their hands on the parts. It’s an opportunity to put his education to work while learning more. “I’m enjoying the job,” Duren said. “The factory is a clean environment and everyone is very professional in the way they operate.”
Duren said his college experience did more than deliver textbook learning; it prepared him for the real world. “The knowledge of the instructors at Greenville Tech was really good. They strive to make you think and to put yourself in the manufacturing industry mindset as you complete your classroom projects,” he said.
Duren’s path from aptitude inventory to career goal took more than a decade. But the payoff has been worth it. “Getting this job felt really good,” he said. “My first day of work was a very happy day.”