Thomas Allen, a staff engineer with Voxtell, got his job after completing the Master’s Industrial Internship Program at the University of Oregon. The Beaverton-based start-up company specializes in the development of photonic devices and systems. As is typical with most graduates of the program, his internship turned into a full-time job that enabled him to stay in Oregon as part of the growing tech industry here.“This allowed me to stay in a town I love and maintain a high standard of living,” says Allen, who now spends his days engineering nanoscale materials for more efficient solar cells. He works in Voxtell’s new underground facility, housed in the UO’s $16 million Lorey Lokey Laboratories.
Allen sees the MSI program as the beginning of something much bigger than himself. As Oregon’s high tech economy continues to grow, we need skilled technicians to keep it alive. “I see this program as a training ground for a workforce that will be available when these new technological breakthroughs happen,” he says.