VGCC offers BioWork training program at Franklin Campus

Classes to train area residents for jobs in the growing biotechnology manufacturing field are scheduled to start soon at Vance-Granville Community College’s Franklin County Campus.

 

VGCC will offer the “BioWork” Process Technician course on a schedule of Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. until 2:30 p.m., Oct. 13 through Dec. 9, in room 306 of the Biotech Building on the campus, located on N.C. 56 just outside Louisburg.

 

BioWork is a training course that prepares men and women for employment as process technicians within bioprocess, pharmaceutical, or chemical manufacturing companies. The rigorous 128-hour curriculum covers topics such as workplace safety, chemistry, process control, and microbiology.

 

The curriculum also provides students with extensive ‘hands-on’ laboratory experience. Certified Bioprocessing technicians are in demand throughout the state, potentially finding opportunities at area companies such as Novozymes in Franklinton, Revlon in Oxford and Proctor & Gamble in Henderson. VGCC has offered the BioWork course since 2001, and it has since been replicated by other colleges. The training program was developed by a team that included VGCC, the N.C. Biotechnology Center, the N.C. Community College System, Novozymes and 15 other biotech companies.

 

The cost of the course is $175, plus $75 in fees and certification costs. Students may be eligible for certain types of funding or scholarships through various agencies.

 

A high school diploma or GED is the only pre-requisite for the course.

 

For more information or to pre-register, call VGCC’s Franklin Campus at (919) 496-1567.