A Passion for Cars and Motorcycles Leads to a Career Path

Grace Gomez has always been artistic. She’s into creating things and working with her hands. She also loves the satisfaction of being able to fix something. 

Combine that with her passion for cars and motorcycles, and choosing a career path in the automotive field may seem obvious. 

But like many students out of high school, Gomez wasn’t clear about her future career or education. She thought about pursuing nursing because it seemed practical but decided it wasn’t a match for her. 

She really liked tinkering around with her car, though, and felt a sense of accomplishment after successfully teaching herself to change the brakes on her Kia Sol.

“That’s when it clicked. I wanted to learn more about what I was doing and thought that looking into a program in automotive might be a good path,” says Gomez, who’s from Holly, MI. 

She attended an open house at Oakland Community College (OCC) in Auburn Hills and seeing the garage and all the engines there lit her up. She knew she’d found the right place.

The OCC experience: Small classes, hands-on learning

Since enrolling at OCC, Gomez has been excited to learn skills in such a supportive setting.

“The hands-on learning environment is so perfect for me,” she says. “OCC has all the tools available to work on my projects and open lab hours. If something goes wrong, someone is there to lend a hand and help fix it.” 

Even in classes with online or textbook-based work, she’s found plenty of resources and support when she’s needed it. Most of her classes are small – about 15 students – so everyone gets to know each other and the instructor well. 

Making connections for jobs and more 

A fellow OCC student told her about a job opportunity, and she now works as an apprentice service tech at a General Motors dealership.  A lot of that work involves scrapping cars, which has been good experience. “You learn a lot about cars and car parts by taking them apart,” Gomez laughs.  

Cameron Berrier, a faculty member in the Welding and Fabrication Technology program at OCC, also helped Gomez a lot. His classes sparked an interest in metal work. She appreciates how she could learn by using the welder herself, but Berrier was always there with tips and advice on techniques. 

“He shared his knowledge with me in welding and fabrication classes, but more than that, he connected me with other people who I should know,” says Gomez.

One of those people was Roger Smith, who is the president of the Antique Motorcycle Foundation (AMF) which provides scholarships to students learning skills needed to restore and repair motorcycles. Gomez earned a $1,500 scholarship from AMF to help her pay for more classes and has met other motorcycle enthusiasts through Smith.

With the skills she’s acquired at OCC, she’s done work on a ’97 truck she bought as a project car, rebuilt a Harley sportster with a more powerful engine for herself, and customized a bike as a gift for her dad. 

And she’s far from done. Gomez is excited to see what’s next, as she turns her passion into her career.

Learn more about OCC’s Welding and Fabrication Technology program and scholarship opportunities.