Scholarship winners will be notified on May 15, 2025, after which there will be a public announcement on June 12, 2025. The scholarships will need to be used by December 31, 2026, with recipients providing proof from ASE of registration in three ASE Professional-level Certification tests by December 31, 2026.
With the scholarship, ASE and Fleetio hope that both student technicians and experienced techs will benefit both in experience and pay.
Retention benefits
George Arrants, vice president of the ASE Education Foundation, noted that with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s recent exemption for TMC entry-level technicians, younger technicians could earn their brake or PM certifications faster, allowing them to enter the workforce more quickly.
“The timing of this scholarship will help those students hopefully earn those two certifications, which would benefit both the student and the organization,” Arrants explained.
Additionally, technician retention could be increased with the scholarship, too. In 2021, the ASE Education Foundation found that 41% of technicians leave the industry within the first two years. But Arrants argued that with the scholarship helping students and young technicians get their certifications to do more varied work, they’ll have more reason to stay in the shop.
“If a young technician can't do brakes or PMs because they have to have a year under their belt, that means they're sweeping floors, they're doing other things, and that discourages them,” he noted.
But the benefits of the scholarship can work for older techs earning their certifications as well, further increasing retention. Arrants noted that many fleets give technicians an hourly pay increase when they earn an ASE certification, which could equate to a yearly pay increase of as much as $11,000 based on how many tests they pass.
“This scholarship would be open to those types of technicians that are not just entry-level, but also advancing and wanting to reach that master level, because we believe that by offering these financial incentives, that'll help with retention,” said Rueffer. “As their earning potential increases, as their fleets are investing in them, hopefully that will translate into retention and better-qualified work.”
