Questions to Ask Electrician Technical Schools<\/strong><\/h3>\nWhen you have decided to earn a diploma, certificate or degree, you can start to refine your training options. Considering that there are so many electrician tech and trade schools in the Wilkes Barre PA region, it’s imperative to have a checklist of criteria that each school must meet. The initial 2 that we discussed were location and tuition expense. If you have an interest in earning an degree online, then that needs to be a feature that your final school offers. And although all three qualifiers may be crucial when making your determination, there are additional factors that must be considered as well. Below is a checklist of those additional qualifiers that you will need to analyze before selecting an electrical technical school.<\/p>\n
Accreditation. <\/strong>Many electrician trade schools have attained either a regional or a national accreditation. They can receive Institutional Accreditation, which involves the school’s programs overall, or Programmatic Accreditation, which pertains to a specific program, for example electrical technology. Confirm that the Wilkes Barre PA school is accredited by a U.S. Department of Education approved accrediting organization, which includes the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. Along with helping ensure that you acquire an excellent education, it can help in securing financial assistance or student loans, which are frequently not available for non-accredited schools. Also, a number of states require that the electrician training course be accredited in order to be approved for licensing.<\/p>\nHigh Completion and Placement Rates. <\/strong>Ask the electrician schools you are looking at what their completion rates are. The completion rate is the percentage or portion of students who enroll in and finish the course. A lower completion rate may signify that students were unhappy with the course and quit. It may also mean that the teachers were not qualified to instruct the students. It’s similarly imperative that the schools have higher job placement rates. Older and\/or more reputable schools may have a broader directory of alumni, which can result in more contacts for the school to employ for their apprenticeship and job placement programs. A high job placement rate can not only confirm that the school has an excellent reputation within the field, but also that it has the network of contacts to assist Wilkes Barre PA students obtain apprenticeships or jobs.<\/p>\nApprenticeship Programs. <\/strong>Most electrician training programs are taught along with an apprenticeship or an internship program. Those participating trade and vocational schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program within their network of electrical businesses or trade unions. Check if the schools you are reviewing have referring partnerships with Wilkes Barre PA area electricians or electrical companies. An apprenticeship not only offers a rewarding experience by furnishing practical training, but it also furnishes job opportunities and helps to establish relationships in the area electrician professional community.<\/p>\nModern Facilities. <\/strong>Make sure 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 already in an internship or an apprenticeship, consult with the electrical tech you are working under concerning what you should be expecting. If not, ask a local Wilkes Barre PA electrical company if they can give you some tips. Also keep in mind that unless you are able to move, the school must be within driving distance of your Wilkes Barre residence. Take note that if you decide to enroll in an out-of-state school, besides the added moving costs there might be higher tuition charges compared to in-state residents.<\/p>\nSmaller Classes. <\/strong>It’s important that you get as much personalized instruction as possible, which can be difficult in bigger classes. Ask if you can sit in on a couple of the classes so that you can observe how large they are and experience the interaction between students and instructors. Talk to some of the students and get their comments concerning class sizes and instruction. Finally, speak with a few of the teachers and learn what their level of experience is and what degrees or certifications they hold.<\/p>\nFlexible Scheduling. <\/strong>Make sure that the class schedules for the schools you are assessing are flexible enough to handle your needs. If you can only attend classes in the evening or on weekends near Wilkes Barre PA, verify that the programs you are comparing offer those choices. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, be sure that the school you select permits part-time enrollment. Also, check out what the policy is to make-up classes should you miss any because of work, illness or family emergencies.<\/p>\nConsidering Attending an Electrician School near Wilkes Barre PA?<\/h3>\n
Following is a little bit of background information about the Wilkes Barre PA area.<\/p>\n
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania<\/h3>
Wilkes-Barre (\/\u02c8w\u026alks\u02ccb\u025b\u0259r\/ or \/-b\u025b\u0259ri\/) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County. It is one of the principal cities in the Scranton\u2013Wilkes-Barre\u2013Hazleton, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley, it is second in size to the nearby city of Scranton. The Scranton\u2013Wilkes-Barre\u2013Hazleton, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 563,631 as of the 2010 Census, making it the fourth-largest metro\/statistical area in the state of Pennsylvania. Wilkes-Barre and the surrounding Wyoming Valley are framed by the Pocono Mountains to the east, the Endless Mountains to the west, and the Lehigh Valley to the south. The Susquehanna River flows through the center of the valley and defines the northwestern border of the city.<\/p>
Wilkes-Barre was founded in 1769 and formally incorporated in 1806. The city grew rapidly in the 19th century after the discovery of nearby coal reserves and the arrival of hundreds of thousands of immigrants who provided a labor force for the local mines. The coal mining fueled industrialization in the city, which reached the height of its prosperity in the first half of the 20th century. Its population peaked at more than 86,000. Following World War II, the city's economy declined due to the collapse of industry. The Knox Mine disaster accelerated this trend after large portions of the area's coal mines were flooded and could not be reopened. Today the city has a population of 40,569, making it the largest city in Luzerne County and the 13th-largest city in Pennsylvania.<\/p>
In the early 18th century, the Wyoming Valley was inhabited by the Shawanese and Delaware Indian (Lenape) tribes. By 1769, John Durkee led the first recorded Europeans to the area. They established a frontier settlement named Wilkes-Barre after John Wilkes and Isaac Barr\u00e9, two British members of Parliament who supported colonial America.<\/p><\/div>\n