How to Become an Electrician in Memphis Texas
The initial step to learning to be an electrical tradesman or contractor is locating an electrician trade school near Memphis TX. But with so many technical schools to pick from, just how do you tackle making certain that you enroll in the ideal one? Especially since there are so many factors to consider. For example, some potential students will start by looking for schools that are nearby their residence. When they have identified several that are within driving distance, they will pick the one with the most affordable tuition. While location and cost are important, they are not the only things that should be considered. Also critical are the reputations of the schools, their accreditation, along with their job placement and graduation rates. These and other qualifiers should contribute toward your ultimate decision when choosing an electrician school. We will cover that checklist in greater detail later in this article. But to begin with, let’s talk a little bit about being an electrician and the instructional options that are offered.
Electrician Degree, Certificate and Diploma Options near Memphis TX
There are multiple ways to obtain electrician training in a trade or technical school near Memphis TX. You may select a diploma or certificate program, or receive an Associate Degree. Bachelor’s Degrees are offered at certain schools, but are not as common as the other three options. Frequently these programs are offered combined with an apprenticeship program, which are mandated by the majority of states to be licensed or if you intend to become certified. Bellow are brief summaries of the three most typical programs available.
- Certificate and Diploma Programs are usually provided by Texas vocational and trade schools and require about a year to complete. They provide a solid foundation and are geared towards individuals who wish to enter an apprenticeship faster as a journeyman electrician.
- Associate Degrees require two years to finish and are offered by Texas community colleges, commonly as an Associate Degree in Electrical Technology. They furnish a more extensive education while providing the foundation that prepares students to begin their apprenticeship program.
As earlier stated, Bachelor’s Degrees are accessible at certain Texas colleges, but are less preferred at four years than the other shorter programs. Most states require that an apprenticeship of no less than 2 years and in most cases 4 years be completed before licensing. For that reason, most students are anxious to begin their paid apprenticeship, particularly if it’s not part of their academic program.
Electrician License and Certification Prerequisites
Electricians in Memphis TX can carry out a vast array of tasks, including testing, installing and replacing electrical systems, and ensuring that the wiring in buildings and homes comply with code standards. After finishing an apprenticeship, journeyman electricians are required to be licensed in most states or municipalities. The duration of apprenticeship differs by state, but generally about four to five years of prior experience is needed before taking the licensing examination. The exams typically test 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 differentiate him or herself as a experienced and skilled professional. The certifications offered vary by state and can be acquired in various specialties, such as cable splicing as an example. The certification procedure usually includes 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) along with the National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET). It’s imperative that the electrician trade school that you enroll in not only furnishes a strong educational foundation, but also helps prepare you for passing any licensing and certification exams that you might be required to pass in the future.
Attending Electrician Online Training Classes in Memphis TX
A possibility that you may have considered is choosing an online electrician school to earn a degree or a certificate. Although online schools are becoming more popular as a means of attending class without the need for travel, in this case they are not totally internet based. Virtually all electrician schools require some attendance on-campus to get practical hands-on training. But since the rest of the classes can be accessed online, internet learning might be a more accommodating choice for individuals that have limited time for education. And as a bonus many online schools have a reduced tuition cost compared to their on-campus alternatives. Commuting expenses from Memphis TX are also reduced and a portion of the study materials can be accessed on line also. Each of these benefits can make online electrician tech schools more economical and accessible. And a number are fully accredited, which we will discuss in our questions to ask checklist.
Things to Ask Electrician Technical Schools
Once you have made a decision to obtain a certificate, diploma or degree, you can begin to refine your school options. Considering that there are numerous electrician vocational and trade schools in the Memphis TX region, it’s imperative to have a checklist of qualifications that each program must meet. The initial 2 that we mentioned were location and the cost of tuition. If you are interested in earning an online degree, then that must be an option that your chosen school offers. And even though all three qualifiers may be crucial when making your decision, there are other variables that need to be considered as well. Below is a checklist of those added qualifiers that you will need to research before selecting an electrical tech school.
Accreditation. Numerous electrician vocational schools have acquired either a regional or a national accreditation. They may attain Institutional Accreditation, which focuses on the school’s programs as a whole, or Programmatic Accreditation, which relates to an individual program, for example electrical technology. Confirm that the Memphis TX program and school are accredited by a U.S. Department of Education approved accrediting organization, for instance the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. In addition to helping make certain that you acquire an excellent education, it may assist in obtaining financial aid or student loans, which are in many cases unavailable for non-accredited programs. Also, many states require that the electrician training program be accredited for it to qualify for licensing.
High Completion and Placement Rates. Ask the electrician schools 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 program. A low completion rate may indicate that students were unhappy with the course and quit. It could also signify that the instructors were not competent to train the students. It’s also imperative that the schools have high job placement rates. Older and/or more reputable schools may have a broader directory of alumni, which may result in more contacts for the school to use for their apprenticeship and job placement programs. A high job placement rate can not only confirm that the school has a good reputation within the trade, but also that it has the network of contacts to assist Memphis TX graduates obtain apprenticeships or employment.
Apprenticeship Programs. A large number of electrician technical programs are taught along with an apprenticeship or an internship program. Those participating vocational and trade schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program within their network of electrician businesses or labor unions. Ask if the schools you are comparing have referring relationships with Memphis TX area electricians or electrical contractors. An apprenticeship not only offers a rewarding experience by providing hands-on training, but it also furnishes employment opportunities and helps to form relationships in the regional electrician professional community.
Modern Facilities. Make certain that the school facilities and the tools that you will be instructed on are state-of-the-art and what you will be using in the field. If you are presently in an internship or an apprenticeship, talk to the electrical tech you are working with concerning what you should be expecting. If not, ask a local Memphis TX electrical company if they can provide some tips. Additionally bear in mind that unless you are able to move, the school needs to be within driving distance of your Memphis home. Take note that if you decide to attend an out-of-state school, in addition to moving costs there can be higher tuition fees compared to in-state residents.
Smaller Classes. It’s important that you get as much individualized training as possible, which can be challenging in larger classes. Ask if you can monitor some of the classes so that you can observe how big they are and experience the interaction between instructors and students. Speak with some of the students and get their comments relating to class sizes and instruction. Last, speak to some of the instructors and find out what their level of experience is and what certifications or degrees they have earned.
Flexible Scheduling. Verify that the class schedules for the schools you are assessing are flexible enough to handle your needs. If you can only attend classes at night or on weekends near Memphis TX, confirm that the schools you are reviewing offer those options. If you can only attend part-time, make sure that the school you select permits part-time enrollment. Also, ask what the protocol is to make-up classes should you miss any due to work, sickness or family issues.
Considering Attending an Electrician School near Memphis TX?
Following is a little bit of background information about the Memphis TX area.
Memphis, Texas
Memphis, Texas, the county seat of Hall County, is at the junction of U.S. Highway 287, State Highway 256, and Farm Road 1547, in the northeastern part of the county. It started in 1889, when J. C. Montgomery purchased land for a townsite north of Salisbury on the Fort Worth and Denver City Railway. This land had been previously owned by W. H. Robertson, who had a dugout near Parker Creek. Montgomery and Robertson, with Rev. J. W. Brice and T. J. Woods, Jr., of Dallas, formed a townsite company and presented a plat early in January 1890. P. M. Kelly opened a law office. A rooming house (later the Memphis Hotel), a general store, a drugstore, and several residences were soon erected. For a time, the new town was without a name. Several suggestions were submitted to federal postal authorities, but with negative results. Finally, as the story goes, Reverend Brice, while in Austin, happened to see a letter addressed by accident to Memphis, Texas, rather than Tennessee, with the notation "no such town in Texas". The name was submitted and accepted, and a post office was established on September 12, 1890, with Robertson as postmaster.
In the meantime, Hall County was being organized. Memphis was engaged in a heated county seat battle with neighboring Salisbury and Lakeview. Memphis won the election with a total of 84 votes. County officers were elected in June, and a school district was subsequently formed. Since Memphis was without a depot and trains did not stop there, certain citizens sought to remedy that situation by smearing the tracks with lye soap. A subsequent agreement was struck between town promoters and railroad officials. In 1891, a depot was built, and businesses were moved on wheels from Salisbury to the new county seat, where a courthouse of homemade bricks was constructed in 1892.
Memphis thus enjoyed a boom period. Two saloons, a bank, numerous stores, blacksmith shops, and livery stables attested to its role as a shipping and trading center for area ranchers and farmers. The Missionary Baptist Church was organized in Memphis; its minister Rev. J. L. Pyle began Baptist congregations throughout the county. Telephone service was first installed in 1901. In June 1906, the town was incorporated with a mayor-council form of city government. The Memphis Cotton Oil Mill was established in 1907. Memphis had at one time or another several newspapers, including the Hall County Record (1889–93), the Hall County Herald (1890–1928), the Memphis Journal (1892–94), the Memphis Times (1896), the Memphis Leader (1897–99), the Hall County News (1897–1903), and the Memphis News (1928–29). The only newspaper extant in 1986, the Memphis Democrat, was launched in 1908 and went through a succession of owners. By the 1920s, Memphis had a new brick-and-stone courthouse, modern utilities, a cotton compress, three hotels, brick school buildings, and a Carnegie Library. In 1922, the city's Morning Side addition was founded east of the tracks as a residential area for blacks who labored in the cotton fields and mills. In 1935, E. M. Ewen and his wife formed the Hall County Old Settlers' Reunion (later the Hall County Picnic Association). Four years later, they staged a rodeo as part of the annual two-day celebration.
Select the Ideal Electrical Vocational School near Memphis TX
Selecting the ideal electrician training program will undoubtedly be the most important decision you will make to start your new career. As we have covered in this article, there are several things that you will need to examine and compare between the training programs you are reviewing. It’s a prerequisite that any electrical training that you are evaluating includes a good deal of hands-on instruction. Classes need to be small in size and each student must have their own equipment to train with. Classroom teaching should offer a real-world perspective, and the curriculum should be current and conform with industry standards. Training programs vary in duration and the type of credential provided, so you will need to ascertain what length of program and certificate or degree will best serve your needs. Each program provides unique options for certification also. Perhaps the best means to research your short list of schools is to check out each campus and talk with the faculty and students. Take the time to attend a few classes. Tour the campus and facilities. Make certain that you are confident that the training program you choose is the best one for you. With the proper training, hard work and dedication, the end result will be a new career as a professional electrician in Memphis TX.
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