A new graduate of Three Rivers Community College in Norwich, Connelly could land a job starting at an annual salary of $38,000 to $40,000 as a photonics technician in the manufacturing environment, with an associate degree in laser and fiber optics technology. Despite the demand for technicians and the generous starting salary, industry companies have had trouble finding qualified photonics technicians. OP-TEC describes itself as a consortium of universities, two-year colleges, high schools, national laboratories, industry partners and professional societies. OP-TEC's list of colleges nationwide that provide photonics education includes roughly 25 two-year institutions. A study conducted by OP-TEC five years ago showed that the number of US technical jobs in photonics and photonics-enabled technologies is expected to grow by more than 1800 per year on average through 2009.
