Find Electrician Schools Near Me in Waltham MA 02154

How to Become an Electrician in Waltham Massachusetts

Waltham MA electrician inspecting circuit panel The initial step to learning to be an electrical tradesman or contractor is enrolling in an electrician trade school near Waltham MA. But with so many technical schools to select from, just how do you tackle making sure that you enroll in the best one? Especially because there are a number of variables to consider. For instance, many potential students will start by looking for schools that are close to their residence. Once they have located some that are within commuting distance, they will select the one with the most affordable tuition. Even though cost and location are of importance, they are not the only factors that need to be evaluated. Also important are the reputations of the schools, their accreditation, as well as their job placement and graduation rates. These and other qualifications should influence your ultimate decision when choosing an electrician training school. We will address that checklist in more detail later in this post. But first, let’s talk a little bit about becoming an electrician and the instructional choices that are available.

Electrician Degree, Certificate and Diploma Programs near Waltham MA

Waltham MA electrician re-wiring power outlet There are multiple ways to obtain electrician instruction in a technical or vocational school near Waltham MA. You may enroll in a certificate or diploma program, or receive an Associate Degree. Bachelor’s Degrees are available at certain schools, but are not as prevalent as the other three alternatives. Often these programs are made available combined with an apprenticeship, which are mandated by the majority of states to be licensed or if you want to earn certification. Bellow are short summaries of the 3 most prevalent programs available.

Diploma and Certificate Programs are generally provided by Massachusetts vocational and trade schools and require approximately a year to complete. They furnish a solid foundation and are aimed towards individuals who want to join an apprenticeship more quickly as a journeyman electrician.
Associate Degree Programs require 2 years to complete and are offered by Massachusetts community colleges, commonly as an Associate Degree in Electrical Technology. They provide a more well-rounded education while supplying the foundation that readies students to join their apprenticeship program.

As previously mentioned, Bachelor’s Degrees are offered at some Massachusetts institutions, but are less preferred at 4 years than the other shorter programs. Most states mandate that an apprenticeship of no less than 2 years and in most cases 4 years be performed prior to licensing. Because of that, the majority of students are anxious to start their paid apprenticeship, particularly if it’s not part of their educational program.

Electrician Licensing and Certification Prerequisites

Waltham MA electricians working on power lines Electricians in Waltham MA can carry out a wide range of functions, including testing, installing and replacing electrical systems, and making sure that the wiring in houses and buildings are up to code standards. After concluding an apprenticeship, journeyman electricians are required to become licensed in the majority of municipalities and states. The period of apprenticeship differs by state, but typically around four to five years of prior experience is needed before taking the licensing examination. The exams commonly test general knowledge and electrical theory, as well as knowledge of the National Electrical Code (NEC). Receiving certification is also an optional means for an electrician to distinguish him or herself as a skilled and experienced professional. The certifications available vary by state and can be acquired in numerous specialties, such as cable splicing as an example. The certification process in most cases entails three levels of competency:

An experience requirement
Passing a written exam
Passing a practical exam

Examples of certifying agencies include the National Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (NJATC) and also the National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET). It’s important that the electrician trade school that you choose not only furnishes a solid educational foundation, but also helps prepare you for passing any certification and licensing exams that you may need to pass in the future.

Enrolling in Electrician Online Training Classes in Waltham MA

attending electrician school online in Waltham MA A possibility that you may have looked at is choosing an online electrician school to earn a certificate or degree. Even though online schools have become more popular as a means of attending class without needing to travel, in this situation they are not entirely internet based. Just about all electrician schools require partial attendance on-campus to obtain hands-on practical training. But since the rest of the classes may be accessed online, distance learning might be a more convenient choice for individuals that have minimal time for schooling. And as an added benefit many online degree programs have a cheaper tuition cost compared to their traditional alternatives. Travelling costs from Waltham MA are also minimized and some of the study materials may be available on line also. Each of these advantages can make electrician online trade schools more affordable and accessible. And many are fully accredited, which we will address in our questions to ask checklist.

Points to Ask Electrician Training Schools

Waltham MA electrician re-wiring circuit panel When you have decided to obtain a certificate, diploma or degree, you can begin to narrow down your training options. Because there are so many electrician tech and trade schools in the Waltham MA region, it’s important to have a checklist of criteria that each program must satisfy. The initial 2 that we discussed were location and tuition expense. If you have an interest in earning an online degree, then that needs to be an option that your final school offers. And while all three qualifiers may be important when making your determination, there are other variables that must be considered also. Following is a checklist of those added qualifications that you will need to assess prior to choosing an electrical vocational school.

Accreditation. A large number of electrician vocational schools have acquired either a regional or a national accreditation. They can acquire Institutional Accreditation, which focuses on the school’s programs as a whole, or Programmatic Accreditation, which relates to a specific program, for example electrical technology. Verify that the Waltham MA program is accredited by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting organization, such as the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. Along with helping make certain that you acquire an excellent education, it may help in obtaining financial assistance or student loans, which are often not available for non-accredited programs. Also, some states require that the electrician training program be accredited for it to be approved for licensing.

High Completion and Placement Rates. Ask the electrician schools you are reviewing what their completion rates are. The completion rate is the percentage of students who enroll in and finish the program. A lower completion rate might suggest that students were dissatisfied with the course and dropped out. It could also mean that the teachers were not competent to instruct the students. It’s also essential that the schools have high job placement rates. Older and/or more reputable schools may have a more extensive directory of graduates, which can result in more contacts for the school to utilize for their apprenticeship and job placement programs. A high job placement rate will not only affirm that the school has an excellent reputation within the field, but also that it has the network of contacts to assist Waltham MA grads obtain apprenticeships or employment.

Apprenticeship Programs. Most electrician technical programs are taught together with an internship or an apprenticeship program. Those participating vocational and trade schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program inside their network of electrical contractors or labor unions. Find out if the schools you are considering have referring relationships with Waltham MA area electricians or electrical companies. An apprenticeship not only provides a valuable experience by furnishing practical training, but it also provides employment opportunities and helps to form relationships in the local electrician professional community.

Modern Facilities. Make certain that the campus facilities and the tools that you will be trained on are up-to-date and what you will be working with in the field. If you are currently in an internship or an apprenticeship, talk to the electrical specialist you are working under regarding what you should be looking for. If not, ask a local Waltham MA electrical contractor if they can provide some pointers. Also keep in mind that unless you are able to move, the school must be within driving distance of your Waltham residence. Take note that if you decide to enroll in an out-of-state school, besides the added moving costs there might be increased tuition charges compared to in-state residents.

Smaller Classes. It’s desirable that you get as much one-on-one training as possible, which can be difficult in bigger classes. Ask if you can sit in on a few of the classes so that you can see how large they are and experience the interaction between instructors and students. Talk to some of the students and get their opinions relating to class sizes and instruction. Finally, speak to a few of the teachers and learn what their level of expertise is and what degrees or certifications they have earned.

Flexible Scheduling. Verify that the class schedules for the programs you are evaluating are flexible enough to meet your needs. If you can only attend classes at night or on weekends near Waltham MA, verify that the schools you are considering offer those choices. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, be sure that the school you select permits part-time enrollment. Additionally, check out what the protocol is to make-up classes should you miss any due to work, sickness or family emergencies.

Considering Attending an Electrician School near Waltham MA?

Following is a little bit of background information about the Waltham MA area.

Waltham, Massachusetts

Waltham (/ˈwɔːlθæm/) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, and was an early center for the labor movement as well as a major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, the city was a prototype for 19th century industrial city planning, spawning what became known as the Waltham-Lowell system of labor and production. The city is now a center for research and higher education, home to Brandeis University and Bentley University. The population was 60,636 at the census in 2010.[2]

Waltham is commonly referred to as Watch City because of its association with the watch industry. Waltham Watch Company opened its factory in Waltham in 1854 and was the first company to make watches on an assembly line. It won the gold medal in 1876 at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. The company produced over 35 million watches, clocks and instruments before it closed in 1957.[3]

The name of the city is pronounced with the primary stress on the first syllable and a full vowel in the second syllable, /ˈwɔːlθæm/ WAWL-tham, though the name of the Waltham watch was pronounced with a reduced schwa in the second syllable: /ˈwɔːlθəm/.[4] As most would pronounce in the British way, "Walthum", when people came to work in the mills from Nova Scotia, the pronunciation evolved. The "local" version became a phonetic sounding to accommodate French speakers who could not pronounce in the British way.

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Choose the Right Electrical Tech School near Waltham MA

Choosing the right electrician trade school will probably be the most critical decision you will make to start your new profession. As we have addressed in this article, there are a number of things that you will need to assess and compare among the training programs you are looking at. It’s a prerequisite that any electrical tech school that you are assessing includes a lot of hands-on training. Classes need to be small in size and each student should have their personal equipment to train with. Classroom instruction should offer a real-world context, and the training program should be up-to-date and in-line with industry standards. Programs vary in duration and the kind of credential provided, so you will need to determine what length of program and degree or certificate will best fulfill your needs. Every program offers unique possibilities for certification also. Perhaps The ideal means to research your short list of schools is to check out each campus and talk with the faculty and students. Invest some time to sit in on a few classes. Inspect the campus and facilities. Make sure that you are confident that the school you choose is the best one for you. With the right training, effort and commitment, the final result will be a new occupation as a professional electrician in Waltham MA.