Find Electrician Schools Near Me in Burlington NC 27215

How to Become an Electrician in Burlington North Carolina

Burlington NC electrician inspecting circuit panel The initial step to becoming an electrical tradesman or contractor is finding an electrician trade school near Burlington NC. But with so many technical schools to choose from, just how do you go about making certain that you enroll in the right one? Especially because there are a number of variables to consider. For example, some prospective students will commence by searching for schools that are close to their home. Once they have located a few that are within commuting distance, they will pick the one with the lowest tuition. While cost and location are significant, they are not the sole factors that must be examined. Also critical are the reputations of the schools, their accreditation, in addition to their graduation and job placement rates. These and additional qualifiers should help mold your final decision when choosing an electrician school. We will address that checklist in more detail later in this post. But to begin with, let’s talk a little bit about being an electrician and the instructional options that are offered.

Electrician Diploma, Certificate and Degree Programs near Burlington NC

Burlington NC electrician re-wiring power outlet There are three general options to obtain electrician instruction in a vocational or trade school near Burlington NC. You may enroll in a diploma or certificate program, or obtain an Associate Degree. Bachelor’s Degrees are offered at certain schools, but are not as common as the first three options. In many cases these programs are offered combined with an apprenticeship, which are required by most states in order to become licensed or if you would like to become certified. Following are brief summaries of the three most typical programs offered.

Certificate and Diploma Programs are typically provided by North Carolina trade and technical schools and take about a year to complete. They provide a good foundation and are aimed towards individuals who wish to enter an apprenticeship faster as a journeyman electrician.
Associate Degrees take 2 years to complete and are offered by North Carolina junior or community colleges, usually as an Associate Degree in Electrical Technology. They provide a more comprehensive education while providing the foundation that prepares students to join their apprenticeship program.

As previously stated, Bachelor’s Degree programs are available at some North Carolina institutions, but are less popular at 4 years than the other briefer programs. Many states require that an apprenticeship of at least 2 years and more typically four years be carried out prior to licensing. Therefore, most students are anxious to start their paid apprenticeship, particularly if it’s not part of their academic program.

Electrician Certification and Licensing Criteria

Burlington NC electricians working on power lines Electricians in Burlington NC can undertake a wide range of duties, including testing, installing and replacing electrical systems, and ensuring that the wiring in houses and buildings comply with code standards. After completing an apprenticeship, journeyman electricians are required to be licensed in the majority of states or municipalities. The duration of apprenticeship differs by state, but usually about four to five years of practical experience is called for in order to take the licensing examination. The exams usually assess general knowledge and electrical theory, along with understanding of the National Electrical Code (NEC). Receiving certification is also a voluntary method for an electrician to identify him or herself as a experienced and skilled professional. The certifications available vary by state and may be acquired in several specialties, including cable splicing as an example. The certification process usually involves 3 levels of competency:

An experience requirement
Passing a written exam
Passing a practical exam

Examples of certifying organizations include the National Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (NJATC) and also the National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET). It’s crucial that the electrician trade school that you choose not only provides a solid academic foundation, but also helps prep you for passing any licensing and certification exams that you might be required to pass in the future.

Enrolling in Electrician Training Classes Online in Burlington NC

attending electrician school online in Burlington NC An alternative that you may have contemplated is choosing an electrician online school to earn a degree or a certificate. Although online schools have become more accepted as a way of attending class without the need for travel, in this case they are not entirely internet based. Pretty much all electrician training programs require partial attendance on-campus to get practical hands-on training. But since the balance of the classes may be accessed online, internet learning may be a more accommodating option for individuals that have minimal time for education. And as an added benefit many online training programs have a reduced tuition cost compared to their on campus counterparts. Commuting expenses from Burlington NC are also minimized and some of the study materials can be accessed online as well. Each of these benefits can make online electrician vocational schools more affordable and convenient. And many are fully accredited, which we will discuss in our due diligence checklist.

Questions to Ask Electrician Trade Schools

Burlington NC electrician re-wiring circuit panel When you have decided to obtain a diploma, certificate or degree, you can start to focus your training options. Because there are so many electrician trade and vocational schools in the Burlington NC area, it’s imperative to have a checklist of criteria that each school must satisfy. The first two that we talked about were location and the cost of tuition. If you have an interest in earning an online degree, then that must be a feature that your chosen school offers. And even though all three qualifiers may be critical when making your determination, there are additional variables that must be taken into account as well. Following is a checklist of those additional qualifications that you will need to analyze prior to enrolling in an electrical vocational school.

Accreditation. Many electrician trade schools have attained either a regional or a national accreditation. They may acquire Institutional Accreditation, which focuses on the school’s programs overall, or Programmatic Accreditation, which pertains to an individual program, for example electrical technology. Make certain that the Burlington NC school and program are accredited by a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting organization, such as the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. Along with helping make certain that you receive an excellent education, it can help in securing financial assistance or student loans, which are frequently unavailable for non-accredited programs. Furthermore, many states require that the electrician training course be accredited for it to qualify for licensing.

High Completion and Placement Rates. Ask the electrician training programs you are looking at what their completion rates are. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students who enroll in and finish the course. A lower completion rate may signify that students were dissatisfied with the program and dropped out. It may also indicate that the instructors were not competent to instruct the students. It’s also important that the schools have higher job placement rates. Older and/or more reputable schools may have a more extensive list of alumni, which may mean more contacts for the school to use for their apprenticeship and job placement programs. A high job placement rate will not only validate that the school has a good reputation within the industry, but also that it has the network of contacts to assist Burlington NC graduates acquire apprenticeships or jobs.

Apprenticeship Programs. Many electrician technical programs are taught together with an apprenticeship or an internship program. Those participating trade and technical schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program within their network of electrician businesses or labor unions. Check if the schools you are considering have working relationships with Burlington NC area electricians or electrical professionals. An apprenticeship not only provides a valuable experience by furnishing practical training, but it also supplies job opportunities and helps to build relationships in the local electrician professional community.

Modern Facilities. Confirm that the campus facilities and the equipment that you will be trained on are up-to-date and what you will be using on the job. If you are currently in an internship or an apprenticeship, talk to the electrical specialist you are working with concerning what you should be expecting. If not, ask a local Burlington NC electrical contracting company if they can provide some tips. Additionally keep in mind that unless you can move, the school must be within commuting distance of your Burlington residence. Take note that if you decide to attend an out-of-state school, in addition to moving costs there can be higher tuition charges compared to in-state residents.

Smaller Classes. It’s important that you receive as much one-on-one instruction as possible, which can be challenging in bigger classes. Ask if you can monitor a few of the classes so that you can see how large they are and experience the interaction between students and instructors. Talk with some of the students and get their opinions regarding class sizes and instruction. Last, speak to a few of the instructors and find out 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 reviewing are flexible enough to fulfill your needs. If you are only able to go to classes at night or on weekends near Burlington NC, verify that the programs you are looking at offer those choices. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, make certain that the school you select allows part-time enrollment. Additionally, find out what the protocol is to make-up classes should you miss any because of work, illness or family emergencies.

Considering Attending an Electrician School near Burlington NC?

Following is a little bit of background information about the Burlington NC area.

Burlington, North Carolina

Burlington is a city in Alamance and Guilford counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the principal city of the Burlington, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Alamance County, in which most of the city is located, and is a part of the Greensboro-Winston-Salem-High Point CSA. The population was 50,042 at the 2010 census,[4] which makes Burlington the 17th largest city in North Carolina. The Metropolitan Statistical Area population was over 150,000 in 2010.

Alamance County was created when Orange County was partitioned in 1849. Early settlers included several groups of Quakers, many of which remain active in the Snow Camp area, German farmers, and Scots-Irish immigrants.

The need of the North Carolina Railroad in the 1850s to locate land where they could build, repair and do maintenance on its track was the genesis of Burlington, North Carolina. The company selected a piece of land slightly west of present-day Graham. On January 29, 1856, the last spikes were driven into the final tie of the North Carolina Railroad project, uniting the cities of Goldsboro and Charlotte by rail. The next day, the first locomotive passed along the new route. When the iron horse arrived in Alamance County, locals referred to it as "the eighth wonder of the world".

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Choose the Right Electrician Tech School near Burlington NC

Choosing the right electrical training program will probably be the most important decision you will make to begin your new career. As we have covered in this article, there are many things that you will need to evaluate and compare between the training programs you are considering. It’s a must that any electrician tech school that you are assessing includes a good deal of hands-on training. Classes need to be smaller in size and every student should have their own equipment to train with. Classroom teaching needs to offer a real-world context, and the course of study should be up-to-date and in-line with industry standards. Courses differ in duration and the kind of credential provided, so you will need to determine what length of program and certificate or degree will best fulfill your needs. Each training program provides unique options for certification also. Probably The ideal way to research your final 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 training program you select is the ideal one for you. With the proper training, effort and dedication, the end outcome will be a new occupation as a professional electrician in Burlington NC.