A new partnership between UC Santa Barbara’s Nanofabrication Facility and semiconductor startup PseudolithIC is giving Carpinteria High School (CHS) students a rare hands-on experience in semiconductor engineering while helping to build a future workforce for one of Santa Barbara County’s fastest-growing industries.
The initiative was spearheaded by Ben Werner, a senior technical program manager at semiconductor company PseudolithIC, which was co-founded by James Buckwalter, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at UCSB. Werner said that the program was created to address the gap between student interest in technical careers and the limited number of internships available.
CHS engineering teacher Kurt Miller sees the new program as a direct pathway between local students and the area’s technology sector.
“I believe every student should have workplace experience before graduation,” he said. “The CHIP program bridges the gap between classroom learning, which can feel theoretical, and the workplace, where learning is practical and has real consequences.”
The CHIP internship model fills an important gap in semiconductor education, given that traditional materials-focused internships and fabrication facilities are often inaccessible to high school students.
For high school sophomore Kamran Dadvar, the most lasting impact of the program was the confidence he gained in using industry level tools and tackling engineering problems.
“I didn’t really know what I was getting into, but I was determined to give it my all,” Dadvar said. “The experience taught me not only technical skills, but also how to present my work and communicate effectively with employers. The best part has been being able to grow an engineer’s mindset and become capable of making and doing so many amazing things.