WHAT’S SO COOL ABOUT MANUFACTURING?
Student Video Contest
What’s So Cool About Manufacturing® (WSCM) is a video-based educational tool created by a consortium of partners led by MRC in 2013 that increases awareness of career paths and technology in manufacturing through “peer marketing”, kids telling kids what’s so cool about manufacturing jobs. The program is executed as a dynamic student video contest between 7th and 8th grade student teams.
Held annually, middle school teams representing their local school districts are paired with pre-selected manufacturers over the 4-month contest period. Each team receives media technology, a curriculum, a teacher-coach, and hands-on training in videography and editing. The students are free to film, edit, and produce a short video highlighting their assigned company’s manufacturing technology, employees, and products. Local media personalities judge all competing videos for “Emmy” type award categories, and online voters determine the coveted “Viewers Choice” Award.
This contest allows students to connect with local manufacturers, document their experiences, and present them in an educational and “cool” way. The contest was created to generate excitement that draws students towards manufacturing career paths, and CTE and STEM education. The program has expanded across the Commonwealth and the country. Inside Pennsylvania there has been 77 regional contests and 5 statewide awards, representing 60 of the 67 Pennsylvania counties.
Watch this video to find out What’s So Cool About Manufacturing!
The “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” comprehensive manufacturing video library was created by MRC and WSCM PA in 2020 and funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (PADCED). The interactive library of the who’s who in Pennsylvania manufacturing, garnered from the yearly regional contests, is intended to serve as an educational resource for anyone curious about manufacturing in Pennsylvania. The library can be accessed through the WhatsSoCool.org website and contains over 1200 student videos featuring 600 unique Pennsylvania manufacturers.