Need Some Opinions Here (long read)
 

Ok so as many of you know I've been going to UTI for auto and diesel. In the beginning of December I had to take a leave of absence from work and school. taking a leave of absense from work went fine but when it came to the school I couldn't get ahold of them always stupid bs like "they left early" "they are one lunch" and when I left a message they wouldn't get back to me. And when I went to the school they said I needed a parent to even discuss it. They charge me for another month of school that I wasn't ever even there for and then "suspended" me from school. And say that I "dropped out", I only have about six months left and have always held ma 4.0 GPA but I'm wondering whether this is going they get me another 10k or 15k to finish and I can't even get ahold of them. I still want to be a mechanic someday and feel I've taken little out of this school. Any ideas from what you guys think I should do and any ways that I can get into the field without needing this certificate?

I know UTI is ruthless with attendance, you may need a lawyer to get that money back. They are very clear up front that you are expected to be there for however long the school is with pretty much no breaks. As for the school itself even if you learn nothing that piece of paper from UTI is gonna open alot of doors for you.

Either that or head out to local shops and get your foot in the door doing the grunt work for minimum wage. Then just work your way up from there.
Having the certificate will probably get you in the door with a higher pay to start. But is by no means required for a lifelong career.

This is exactly why I went to Wyotech.

We have the same type of attendance policy.. You get 25 hours you can miss, anything more you time out and have to repeat that phase. They dont care yor reasons either, medical, Jewish holidays nothing. We had a kid who was late to class and timed out because he was at DRILL all weekend for the marines. I wish you the best of luck, people here are hard to get a hold of as well.

That sucks but UTI is a shitty school..ive warned numerous people to stay away from that place..I know a lot of people that went there and complained about it. As far as working u can do what Matt said and get your foot in the door at local garages and work your way up. If you do your research you can also find seminars/classes that are run at dealerships that anyone can attend. I know they do it for diesels.

If you feel confident in any areas take the ASE test.. it should help with employment as well if you dont go back

id honestly hire someone thats ASE certified in ANYTHING over has some piece of paper from a school. the ASE Test if you've ever seen a pre-test is WAY more real world shit then anything you read in a book. actually some good advise josh. i think undercar is the easiest test out there. then you can goto ASE classes at night for cheap. some garages will pay for the class and test.

I've taken ASE pre-tests and have passed them all with flying colors. Theyre only 40-60 questions pending on the test. I dont know how long you were there or what you covered but I would imagine you could go and take the ASE for Brakes and steering/suspension. Those are two of the ones I'm taking in May. Registration began the 1st but the test isnt until may. Any questions feel free to ask..

Also heres a good link to read over: http://www.ase.com/Template.cfm?Sect...ContentID=6152

thanks guys I really appreciate it

Yup, brakes and suspension/steering were the two ase certs I had (let them lapse though, it's been years since I've worked in a mechanical garage).

Both were pretty common sense. Only thing I will say is study up good on abs, that was the only thing that almost tripped me up on the brakes test.

And fwiw if I were still in business or were ever to reopen I'd take someone with real world work experience over a slip of paper from a school any day. School is great for theory but it can't teach common sense. Most of the real world is common sense and the best way to get that is by hands on real world work.

I've just found that its difficult to get a job to get a lot of real hands on experience without having it already. you know what I mean?

Not too hard if you're willing to do grunt work for minimum wage and bust your ass when you get your foot in the door to prove you're worth training.

I've never had a day of schooling in my life but I worked in the automotive industry for about 13 years, doing both mechanical and auto body. And both times I started out exactly like I said.
Not saying it'll happen overnight, you have to be willing to pay your dues and work hard to prove yourself.

But, if I had it to do over again I'd probably stay out of the automotive industry all together. Go be a plumber or an electrician. Twice the pay, half the cost of tools, and no one bitches about what it costs to make their toilet flush or lights turn on. But god forbid it costs more than a happy meal to make your car not sputter anymore lol.
I've been on both ends of the shop spectrum and in this economy it's tough to break in and make good money. If you're already established the good paying work goes to you sure, but especially where you're starting out I wouldn't plan on making great pay for a long time.
Someday I may go back, but for now I make a LOT more money stocking coolers and serving alcohol. It's pathetic really lol. And trust me, I know what a lot of veteran techs make. More often than not it's not all that spectacular.

Thanks guys!