More than 74 high school students and career changers gathered at Park Place Dealerships, one of North Texas’ premier automobile dealerships, to learn how Universal Technical Institute (UTI) can provide them with the training to work on luxury brands like Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and McLaren.

Several UTI graduates currently employed by Park Place provided students with details about what it’s like to work at one of America’s Top Workplaces. This year, Workforce Dynamics ranked Park Place #4 nationwide among 872 organizations with more than 1,000 employees.

Kristopher Robin, who started working at Park Place in January 2012 after graduating from the UTI-Dallas/Fort Worth Campus, talked about how today’s cars are marvels of ingenuity and that there is strong demand for well-trained technicians.

Kurt Vanous, Human Resources Brand Manager of Park Place Dealerships, told the audience that working at a high-end dealership requires a strong track record of being on time and a first-rate education.

“Attendance at school is the number one thing we look at,” said Vanous. “If our technicians don’t show up for work then we’re not fulfilling our obligation of fixing our customers’ cars.

“We expect you to be ready to work on your first day here, and I don’t know a school out there that does that better than UTI.”

In between checking out brand new car models and learning more about working at Park Place from management and technicians, attendees had the chance to visit with UTI-Dallas/Fort Worth Campus leadership and admission representatives.

“We pride ourselves on our industry partnerships with companies like Park Place,” said Jesus Miranda, Campus President for UTI-Dallas/Fort Worth. “It’s because of these relationships that a high percentage of our students go on to rewarding and successful careers as auto and diesel repair technicians.”

UTI-Dallas/Fort Worth also has industry partnerships in place with North Texas employers including Sewell Automotive Dealerships, Penske, Equipment Depot, Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART), Rush Truck Centers, Enterprise, BMW of Dallas and Classic BMW.

To learn more about UTI-Dallas/Fort Worth, please visit www.uti.edu/DFW.