Apr 18, 2023
2023 PTEC Students
Pictured from left to right are students Marcus Pannell, Jordan Luis, David Black, Orlando Sanchez, Allen Burleigh, Cody Longoria, Matthew Lloreda and Jonathan Payne with College of the Mainland adjunct professor of process technology Dennis Link.

On April 21, eight students from College of the Mainland’s (COM) Process Technology Program (PTEC) will be competing in the North American Process Technology Alliance (NAPTA) sixth annual Troubleshooting Skills Competition (TSC) in Pasadena, Texas. Defending their winning title of first place from last year’s competition, COM will be returning with two new teams of students led by adjunct COM Professor of PTEC Dennis Link.

Crediting help with COM PTEC alumni and TSC winners, current students are able to learn from former students who have graduated from the program and now work in the field. “We have an advantage over other schools,” stated Link. “We did do well, and our students volunteered to come back and give back to the college.”

Before competition day, NAPTA hosts a small mixer giving students the opportunity to meet with industry leaders and peers. With students in the competition being considered some of the top in the nation, they are encouraged to bring copies of their resumes. “They’re going to have a very good chance of getting a job offer within three to four months after the competition,” Link said with hopes that COM takes home the gold again.

The North American Process Technology Alliance is the standard–bearer of the PTEC curriculum. The NAPTA audits PTEC degree programs in North America and endorses those that meet its criteria. Several colleges have received the NAPTA endorsement.

The College of the Mainland PTEC program, which is the first of its kind in the nation to offer an associate degree, provides innovative and dynamic learning opportunities for students through labs, hands-on classes and industry-grade operating equipment. With the growth of the petrochemical industry on a steady rise in the Gulf Coast region, the new custom unit will help to ensure that students in the College’s PTEC program are equipped with the training needed in the popular industry.

For more information about the College of the Mainland Process Technology program, visit www.com.edu/academics/ptec/.