LEESBURG, Va. — The National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) will be a sponsor of the 2023 U.S. Auto Tech National Championship, a summer-long competition that culminates in the live finals in Tampa, Fla., on Oct. 27-28.
The finale, which follows a series of preliminary rounds held both online and at selected regional locations throughout the summer, will take place at the Tampa Convention Center.
The U.S. Auto Tech National Championship, now in its fifth year, was created to allow the best professionals and student auto technicians in the U.S. to showcase their skills while earning cash rewards and product prizes.
The top-placing professionals are competing for a top prize of $40,000, with $20,000 for second place and $10,000 for third. The top student tech will take home $25,000, with $15,000 set aside for second and $5,000 for third.
"The U.S. Auto Tech National Championship serves as a way to showcase the professionalism and advanced training of individuals in the transportation industry," ASE President and CEO Tim Zilke said, "including demonstrating the skills of those who are about to enter the workforce.
"Moreover, the competition offers students nationwide an invaluable opportunity to explore the multitude of exciting career paths available in the transportation industry."
The ASE will be the presenting sponsor of competition's Round of 64, where the top 64 professional and student techs will test their knowledge with an online multiple-choice quiz with questions provided by the ASE covering topics drawn from ASE certification exams, professional certificate exams and entry-level certificate exams, the ASE said.
There are two ways to qualify, either at an in-person qualifier or through the digital "Driven to Win" challenge. In-person qualifying rounds began in April. The lone remaining in-person opportunity is July 19-22 at University of Northwest Ohio in Lima, Ohio.
The competition organizers will choose 64 students and 64 professionals from among those who participated in the qualifying challenges.
These 64 participants will then participate in an online multiple-choice quiz to determine the best 16 candidates in each category. Those 16 will be tasked with completing a hands-on, at-home challenge in a kit that will be mailed to them.
The four top-scoring participants out of these 16, both professional and student, will be invited to compete in the finals in Tampa.
The competition is owned and organized by Ideal Industries Inc., a Sycamore, Ill.-based global enterprise active in a wide range of industries, that goes to market under the Trades Nation identity.
