Posts
34
Joined
4/1/2008
Location
Greeneville, TN, USA
Edited Date/Time
1/22/2012 11:32am
I'm set to attend MMI in the middle of july, and as you can imagine it's very expensive. I have already applied for the Jermy Mcgrath scholarship. If anyone has any information about scholarships it would be greatly appreciated if you could give me some information on them.
Thanks in advance.
Thanks in advance.
Here in AZ it is very difficult to find a technician job at a dealer. The shops are laying people off right now. Several shops have actually closed down. I heard CA is slowing down also. As far as the Jeremy Mcgrath scholarship, you will be competing against a lot of people and the odds aren't good.
Good Luck
The Shop
DeCal Works Huge Plastic Inventory of UFO and Polisport kits.
Luxon 4-Post Bar Mounts
$189.95 - $239.95
As for financial aid, I took a test that the school offered, placed 3rd and got a few $K off my tuition. If you're coming out of high school, ask your counselor for any scholarships that might help you, they're out there.
http://www.spartan.edu/
http://swz.salary.com/salarywizard/layouthtmls/swzl_compresult_national…
http://www.avjobs.com/salaries-wages-pay/index.asp
http://www.jsfirm.com/searchjobs.asp
motorcycle mechanic can be a tough career choice.
MXracer if you find you simply cannot afford MMI, find a well established shop with a very good mechanic. Offer to work your butt of as a helper/apprentice.
You will probably learn as much if not more than you would at a motorcycle trade school.
If you absolutely love motorcycles then do it even if you make minimum wage you will be way happier than you would working on an Airplane for more money. I work on bikes everyday and there have been times when I have been super super broke however I wouldn't change it for the world. When all is said and done I find myself sitting on the back of the van at races just feeling lucky and happy that I work on dirt bikes for a living... I still can't believe I do this sometimes.
HOWEVER, if you don't absolutely love it, then don't do it. It will either ruin your hobby or you won't have much money to do things that you might enjoy otherwise. All of the money I make goes right back into my business because it's what I enjoy most. My life is awesome.. I work on bikes all day listening to old DMXS archives, when I eat lunch I am on the internet reading about MX, when I am not working or at the races I am watching it on TV or reading TWMX. It's the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning and the last. I never get tired of it and I don't really care about anything else besides MX and my son. Just make sure it's your passion.
Also like another said, there are many city/community colleges that teach to become a M/C techs.....and I guarantee you will learn the same M/C theories, technologies and terminologies MMI teaches. And when you graduate and if you get hired, gotta have your own tools to work with.
http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Motorcycle_Service_Technician/H…
Good luck.
DBMike has a great opposing view, too. Good debate!
JJ
but thanks eveyone for your opinions and info but i think im gonna stick with ''big'' on this one.
I have worked with many MMI grads and there are 2 things MMI or any MC school do not teach you.....how to work FAST and how to up sell additional work. MMI gives you book knowledge with some basic hands on experience but its on bikes that have been apart 100's to 1000's of times so they basically fall apart and you do not have to scrape gaskets ...remove broken bolts ect...when in the real world it is much harder and requires much more attention detail and looking for short cuts to save time that the manuals do not show you.
Hourly you will barely make it. Flat rate is where the $$ is. Back when I was wrenching I turned an average of 60-100 hours a week. If the doors were open...... I was there 6 days a week. The problem with flat rate is you basically starve from Oct-March. It sucks standing around and fighting over whatever job came threw the door with 3 or 4 other techs. I asked to be the 1st person laid off in the winter. Its feast or famine! You must save when its good for the slow times.
I would recommend that anyone who wants to be a MC tech to start out by working at a shop even if you're just a shop rat cleaning up and changing tires & brakes. Then go to MMI and learn after you have gotten your feet wet and understand how things work. If you show potential a good shop may help you out with tuition and a job when your done ......or send you to the factory schools.
I started out doing work study my senior year in High School where I went to 3 or 4 classes in the morning then got credit for going to work for the rest of the day. I did some basic repairs and changed 1000's of tires. The shop kept telling me that they were going to send me to Honda classes but after 2 years they never did but I learned a lot from the other techs and was able to do anything that came threw the door. I heard another shop (Cycle 5 in Dunkirk MD) was looking for a tech and in my interview asked them to send me to Kawasaki school. A week later I was sitting in NJ in classes. Funny thing was that I already had learned 95% of what they were teaching but it was worth it. BTW....shops must send techs to these classes to increase their flat rate warranty $
from what i hear, its not quite worth going. i didnt go to school for it, and ive pretty close to completely rebuilt my 450 with no problems at all. they dont prepare you enough to go get that top mechanics spot at a large dealership, and for that kind of money to go there, i think they should.
Pit Row
-He's a fourth generation motorcyclist, has a 4.0, and is 1st in his class out of about 25. He's going knowing that it's for him.
I've looked for scholarships for him, but they're far and few between for the bike industry, unless I don't know where to look. You may as well plan on paying or getting a student loan.
Me, never went. Learned the hard way......Shoot
still under construction, the learning part. See,
you never really stop, the learning part. Everyday,
something.......Schools, they are what they are.
It's what you choose to get from it all, & how you
apply yourself. I've hired guys from both schools of
thought. Real schools, & "in the field-n-trenches"
schools. Which is best or better, again it's up to you,
& what may be expected from you. Schools are controlled.
It's good for what it is, yet I feel you need both nowadays.
One thing's for sure, be a sponge. Ask questions. The more the
better. Every top guy or girl has broken bolts, made mistakes,
& yet they've all learned from it all. Sure it takes time.
When am I ready, you'll say or ask?
Ready comes when it happens, & if it comes, let it happen!
Being scared is normal, yet again, all the best have been in
that same spot. Chill, slow down, think it through, don't panic,
& you'll be fine. Experience takes time! Enjoy the ride!
Dave O.
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