Occupational safety is an ever-growing career field

(ROSENBERG, Texas) - A key to a successful workplace is to ensure that it is a safe one. Students in the Occupational Safety and Environmental Compliance program at Texas State Technical College are training to do just that.

From industrial hygiene - the practice of recognizing and controlling hazardous work conditions - to environmental regulation, graduates of the program are able to apply their skills in any number of career fields.

"The students here will be going out to protect the employee population," said Hari Pillai, a program instructor at the Fort Bend County campus. "Once you go out into the industry, you are responsible for people. That is what is unique about this field and program."

It is a mindset that both Pillai and his co-instructor Andrea Skinner-Creeks strive to instill in their students. Hands-on training helps students truly understand what situations and materials they will be working with during their future careers. Such training includes practices like environmental sampling and analysis, as well as first aid.

Skinner-Creeks has found that students from the program have had no trouble landing jobs after, or sometimes even before, graduation. And, according to onetonline.org, the need for occupational health and safety technicians in the state was forecast to grow by 22% between 2020 and 2030.

At TSTC, students can choose to pursue an Associate of Applied Science degree in Occupational Safety and Environmental Compliance, and certificates of completion in Occupational Safety and in Environmental Compliance. The program is available at the Abilene, Fort Bend County and Waco campuses.

Registration for TSTC's spring semester is open. For more information, go to tstc.edu.