Dual training program begins at the CMPC – Duoc UC Nacimiento campus

In July, the Duoc UC institution trained the CMPC employees who will function as volunteer tutors so that students in two of the technical degree programs at the Nacimiento campus in the Biobío Region of Chile get the chance to apply their classroom learning inside the company’s plants.

“When I was studying I had a teacher who became a real mentor, a support person for that subject who he helped me a lot. He backed me up and gave me the tools to continue growing as a person. Now I can see the results of what he instilled in me,” said Rodrigo Villalobos, an operational and mechanical maintenance worker at CMPC’s Laja Plant in south-central Chile.

This semester it will be Villalobos’ turn to be a tutor and support future professionals in the field he works in. This is thanks to a dual training program implemented by the CMPC – Duoc UC Nacimiento campus in conjunction with the company. This is an opportunity for electricity and industrial automation and electro-mechanical maintenance technician students at the educational institution to learn in the field alongside CMPC workers.

July 28 saw the completion of the training sessions provided by Duoc UC to CMPC tutors and master guides who will be tasked with supporting and teaching the students. The purpose of the training period was to provide company employees with the tools to facilitate the students’ education directly in the work environment and foster the skills related to effective communication, leadership, and more.

Irenio Retamal, a worker at Mininco’s Pacific Plant, said he hopes it will be a useful experience for the students. “I’ve observed a lot of students doing their internship at the plant and realized what information they don’t have yet or what they don’t quite understand, which is being addressed now. They’re going to get the knowledge they need. They’ll be learning more about what it is we do before starting internship at the plant. Giving students the option to do this was a great idea. The benefits are numerous,” he said.

This dual training system that began in Germany lets students complement the knowledge acquired in the classroom through practical experience with a company. The program implemented at the Nacimiento Campus seeks to respond to the needs of the labor market with a special focus on the paper industry and talent development. A program of 72 hours of practical training will be implemented that starts in August.

CMPC – Duoc UC Nacimiento campus Deputy Director Pablo Briones said that the tutors were trained on how to use existing pedagogical tools so that they can play a major role in the process. “The role of the tutor for us is key because that interaction is the student’s first experience at the plant. This partnership ultimately contributes to their education from the ground up. I think it’s very important for students to reinforce and complement their campus-based theoretical education at the plant,” he said.
CMPC Nacimiento Corporate Affairs Supervisor Cristián Cutiño said that the program “is of the utmost importance, because we believe that building a dual technical-professional training will serve as a catalyst for the territory. This not only addresses the theoretical topics discussed in the classroom, it also generates practical learning conditions in the field. Ultimately the graduates will have a much better professional profile upon entering the workforce.”

The students will receive instruction from the new volunteer tutors at three company plants in south-central Chile, which will reinforce the education they’ve acquired at the institute. These include the Santa Fe plant in Nacimiento as well as the Laja and Pacífico plants in Mininco. Each venue has been specially equipped to train students with dual-education classrooms, as well as spaces set up to host different types of learning environments.