Our Mission
Accelerating research, innovation, and real-life training
VAST is a network of partners working to advance semiconductors in Virginia. These partnerships are working together to reduce the time and cost between concept, creation, and prototype implementation for new semiconductor innovations.
VAST serves industry and the semiconductor, microelectronics, and nanotechnology ecosystem through a collaborative network of Virginia’s preeminent universities to providing easy access to state-of-the-art research facilities across the Commonwealth of Virginia and through certifications to bolster workforce access in rapidly evolving fields.
Our initiatives include:
Fast Track to Semiconductor Careers (FTSC) certificate programs to reskill and upskill veterans and adult learners in different aspects of semiconductor industry including chip fabrication, semiconductor packaging, and equipment maintenance and repair, to provide internship opportunities through partnerships with semiconductor and defense industries, and to create a pathway to employment.
Start-up and Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Development (SEED) to create seamless access to VAST facilities and training programs for startups with the goal of increasing the number of Virginia small businesses in the semiconductor, biomedical device, and quantum computing industries and related fields and to decrease the ideation to prototype development time and cost.
High School Advanced Teaching in Chips (HATCH) to create a more balanced approach to education between hardware and software by establishing focused programs tailored for high school students and teachers on chip fabrication, nanotechnology, and microelectronics. Outreach to underrepresented and underdeveloped communities across the Commonwealth will be a special focus of VAST’s HATCH program.
Experiential Learning, Innovation, and Talent Empowerment (ELITE) to address the talent shortage in semiconductors by establishing new programs within Virginia Community Colleges, to accelerate transdisciplinary research and innovation in Virginia universities, to create state-wide Centers of Excellence, and to grow internship, scholarship, and fellowship opportunities for Virginia students and faculty through strategic partnerships between VAST, VEDP, and semiconductor and defense corporations.
