When it comes to automotive mechanic schools, Matrix Trade Institute (MTI) is a top contender for students looking to embark on a career as an auto mechanic. Unlike most of the available education options, MTI was founded by automotive industry experts who’ve identified what many outdated trade school models have been missing for years. Our disruptive approach to mechanic training is designed to meet the demand for efficient entry-level mechanics using modern interactive learning technology and a hands-on repetition approach to help employers retain and grow them into the next generation of loyal, well-compensated, leading automotive mechanics.
Is MTI right for you? Here’s how MTI’s automotive mechanic efficiency training stacks up against other trade schools.
Length of Program
It’s not a matter of how long it takes to become an auto mechanic, but rather how long it should take. Most trade schools take two or more years to complete, as they focus on curriculum and operations that aren’t relevant to an entry-level auto mechanic.
However, by eliminating all the “fluff” and only focusing on the necessary job skills, MTI’s accelerated 20-week program offers the fastest entry into the automotive repair field in Northeast Ohio. Both day (8 a.m. to 1 p.m.) and night (4 p.m. to 9 p.m.) classes are available, so students can work while they train. Graduates of the program will receive MTI’s Ohio State Board of Career Colleges and Schools approved Maintenance and Light Repair (MLR) Certificate as well as the National Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) G-1 Level Certification that employers look for when hiring entry-level mechanics.
Local Education
For students based in Northeast Ohio, there are very few local options to get an auto mechanic education. You’ll be even more pressed to find one that prioritize hands-on repetition, efficiency and the level of job placement opportunities both during and after the program.
MTI offers a fast and affordable solution for aspiring auto mechanics seeking a quality education in a short time as well as certification and employer connections. Our state-of-the-art modern campus is easy to get to in Beachwood, Ohio, located near I-271/480. This allows our students to work and live close to home while completing 20 weeks of training.
Learning Technology
Studying from a textbook doesn’t benefit hands-on learners like automotive mechanic students who would rather work with their hands and interact with technology. This traditional, outdated education model of textbook learning enforced by most trade schools fails to keep students engaged and doesn’t prepare them for the tasks they’ll learn. Most trade school programs are too long, too expensive and simply don’t prepare students to be effective and efficient on the job from day one, wasting time and money.
Instead, our interactive game-style learning technology better engages students who need hands-on interaction to learn and make connections between the classroom and the repair shop. At MTI, we traded in textbooks for Chromebooks and a NATEF/ASE-approved interactive learning software. These interactive, video-game style simulations are used to “virtually” learn and perform each repair prior to doing the real thing in the shop. Students who are better hands-on learners will excel and can complete coursework and homework using their laptops, phones, or any other smart device.
Automotive Mechanic Efficiency Training
Time equals money. Sounds simple, yet most trade schools fail to prioritize the immediate potential auto mechanics have to earn and advance if they’re prepared to be productive on day one. By focusing on advanced level repairs like engine and transmission diagnosis and theory rather than on hands-on repetitions for basic maintenance and light repair operations that new employees are allowed to perform with enough practice, these other trade schools waste students’ time and money and set poor expectations of what they’ll be asked and able to do when they start working. Employers have found that graduates from these other trade schools don’t have the competency, repetitions, efficiency training and appropriate expectations and soft skills necessary to succeed immediately and to advance their careers.
MTI, on the other hand, makes hands-on repetition and efficiency training a priority above all else. Our program features M-TIME (Matrix Trade Institute Measures Efficiency), a proprietary, hands-on efficiency training application for the skills that employers are desperately seeking. Critical operations, including oil and tire changes, wheel alignments, brake repairs and replacements, suspension work, vehicle inspections and much more are taught against a clock to measure, improve and maximize efficiency. In addition to tracking their own efficiencies, students will learn to set efficiency goals, evaluate progress and be taught methods to improve their efficiency over time using our M-TIME resources and standard labor operation guides. This is the special sauce that will enable MTI grads to maximize income potential for their entire careers.
Auto Mechanic Tools
As is typical of most trade occupations, employers require auto mechanic to supply their own tools. Auto mechanic tools cost thousands of dollars, putting entry-level workers at a huge disadvantage.
MTI provides students with their own, customized Matco tool kit and Bluepoint cart, specifically assembled for the operations they learn during the program. This allows students to train with their tools and get comfortable and confident using them. Upon graduation, they take those same tools with them to the job, arming them for immediate success and productivity. Additionally, MTI’s program uses state-of-the-art shop equipment including but not limited to: Revolution 2 and 4 Post Lifts, Hunter Tire Machine, Balancer & Hawkeye Elite Alignment System, Amco Brake Lathe, Fluke Multi-Meters, BG Fluid Transfer equipment and more. This allows our students enter the workforce comfortable and confident will all of the equipment necessary to be efficient and succeed.
Professional Soft Skills
In addition to being a knowledgeable and efficient worker, it’s also important to have the soft skills required by employers. Soft skills are what sets auto mechanics looking for jobs apart from other candidates. Shop culture and communication are teachable skills that are critical to advancement and success in the automotive field.
MTI’s industry background and DNA makes it possible for automotive mechanic students to learn these critical soft skills. At MTI, we teach effective adviser and customer communication skills and best practices. Our students will learn ethics, punctuality, reliability, teamwork and how to fill downtown productively. They’ll also be skilled on upselling, proper quote preparation, parts requests, and how to story repair orders.
Job Placement and Career Support
What’s the point of education if there’s no outcome of a job? With other trade programs, long school days make it hard for students to earn money while they learn. And come graduation, students are left on their own to look for employment and advance throughout their career.
At MTI, our primary objective is employment for both our students and our graduates, which is why we provide students with both job placement and career support. With our flexible, day and night classes, all our student have the opportunity to work in the industry while attending MTI. Our network of employer partners, including Conrad’s, Liberty Ford and several others, offer immediate career opportunities, such as tuition reimbursement programs, top of industry compensation, efficiency bonuses and career advancement tracks for graduates.
A major differentiator is that MTI follows your career advancement beyond graduation with our M-LIFE Career Support. Our regimented post-graduation contact supports continued efficiency tracking and improvement and provides ongoing resources for graduates when they encounter obstacles on the job. We provide our students with real-life expectations of the trade and guidance with resumes, interviewing, basic financial management, goal setting and best practices for career advancement.
This is the Opportunity You’ve Been Waiting For
Don’t waste your time and money with other trade school programs. MTI offers fast, affordable and local education that’s designed to teach the next generation of auto mechanics to be as efficient as the vehicles they’ll maintain and repair.
Contact us today to schedule a tour and learn more about our automotive mechanic efficiency training program. In the meantime, take our Aptitude Test featuring our game-style learning technology to see if Matrix Trade Institute is right for you.