A total of thirty-eight (38) student interns were immersed in the operations and other technical activities of the UPLB Agricultural Machinery Testing and Evaluation Center (UPLB AMTEC) this midyear 2024. They were a combination of college and high school students from eight (8) educational institutions across the Philippines. 

This year’s AMTEC internship program aims to train students by providing valuable knowledge in agricultural machinery, particularly on testing and evaluation methods and innovations. The program aspires to inspire future engineering professionals through various exposures in laboratory and field testing operations, policy development events, and other relevant learning opportunities.

Among them, five (5) were secondary students from the Philippine Science High School System – CALABARZON, one (1) BS Electrical Engineering student from the UPLB Department of Electrical Engineering (DEE), and thirty-two (32) BS Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (ABE) students from Bulacan Agricultural State College (BASC), Central Bicol State University of Agriculture – Pili Campus (CBSUA), Central Luzon State University (CLSU), Laguna State Polytechnic University – Siniloan (LSPU), Mindanao State University-Main Campus (MSU), Mindoro State University (MinSU), and UPLB Institute of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (IABE).

The student interns underwent a series of hands-on training through the supervision of the AMTEC resident test engineers. They also attended special in-house sessions on technical topics related to the laboratory and field testing operations of the Center. Additionally, the students were given a rare opportunity to experience assisted handling of test instruments— which are one of the few, if not the only, available units in the country. 

Apart from the technical training experience, they were also assigned to organize seminars on personality development and career guidance sessions. The series of talks aims to inculcate vital topics complementing their gained technical skills and knowledge, to prepare them better for their future career plans. 

As an active extension and public service unit, this activity is part of  AMTEC’s support for the university’s thrust to collaborate and establish partnerships with other HEIs in the country. These interns are the most numbered batch accommodated by the Center since it began accepting BS ABE students in the past. 

Moreover, AMTEC has also opened its doors to other engineering degree programs that expressed their interest in spending their on-the-job training in the facilities and operations of the Center. Aside from the electrical engineering student this midyear, mechanical, industrial, and electronics engineering students were recently accepted in the past semesters.

AMTEC, as a knowledge-intensive institution, remains committed to sustaining the quality of its services and extending its expertise through various knowledge-sharing initiatives that would bolster the government’s mechanization efforts.