NSF ExLENT Aerospace Engineering Workforce Training - Dallas Fort Worth (DFW)

Overview

This NSF ExLENT Beginning project aims to develop a Community-College-University-Industry workforce pipeline strategically located at the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) area, one of the nation’s hubs for the aerospace industry. We aim to recruit 20 trainees from Tarrant County College (TCC) and the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) to participate in our 10-day training in March 2026. The participants will be trained on making, testing, and analyzing aerospace materials, following a curriculum jointly made by TCC, TCC, and our industry partners (Lockheed Martin, RECARO, ANSYS, Aeroblaze). The training will be hands-on and industry-demanded. You will receive $1,000 stipend/person during the cohort training (10 days). If you join the summer internship, you will receive $3,360/person/month support for your internship. After the training, you will get opportunities for: One-on-one career advising in the aerospace industry. Summer industry or research internship. Significantly boost and accelerate your career entry and growth in the aerospace industry. This project aims to build and strengthen an aerospace workforce pipeline connecting TCC, UTA, the UTA Research Institute (UTARI), and RECARO Aircraft Seating. All the sectors are local to the DFW area. The project is expected to 1) effectively align educational outcomes with workforce needs, 2) expand career access, 3) strengthen industry-academic partnerships, and 4) enhance aerospace literacy and outreach. The developed workforce model can be scaled nationwide for the aerospace industry, ultimately advancing national prosperity and welfare, and securing national defense.