ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Monroe Community College is taking learning to a new level by using alternate and virtual reality technologies to get students motivated in career exploration and to get more students interested in manufacturing.

“It seems like the youth has this idea that manufacturing is old, it’s hard, and they also sometimes think it doesn’t pay as much,” said Siva Visveswaran, program director of Software and Information Technology at Monroe Community College. “But all of that is wrong.”

And with the help of the AR VR program, students will able to see it for themselves.

“These technologies are also great for teaching and learning,” Visveswaran said. “They’re immersive. They offer audio-visual stimulation. They offer a lot better memory recall.”

It’s allowing students the opportunity to have hands-on experience with different manufacturing careers from the safety of the classroom.

“There’s also this other aspect that these technologies are being used in the industries,” she said. “If you go to a smart factory today or a manufacturing plant, they’re using these AR technologies to augment a person’s capability and work.”

The program offers students a way to explore new career paths by better understanding them.

“When they start seeing that this is high-tech factories, they’re going to have to be making a lot of very critical decisions so they feel very empowered, “Visveswaran said. “And then they can see faster growth, they’re going want to get into these spaces.” 

The center hopes this will offer students a whole new world of possibilities regardless of the career path they choose.

“We’re talking in the context of manufacturing today, which is the focus of our forward center,” Visveswaran said. “But if you look at these technologies they are applicable across other industries as well.”

Industries like health care, which has already been using AR and VR technology for remote surgeries.

“I mean it’s already happening,” Visveswaran said. “I think overtime, schools will deploy all of these technologies in their curriculum and in their classrooms.”