What to Ask Electrician Tech Schools<\/strong><\/h3>\nOnce you have decided to earn a diploma, certificate or degree, you can start to focus your training options. Since there are numerous electrician vocational and trade schools in the Old Hickory TN region, it’s imperative to have a checklist of qualifications that each school must meet. The initial 2 that we talked about were location and tuition expense. If you have an interest in earning an online degree, then that must be a feature that your final school offers. And while all three qualifiers may be crucial when making your selection, there are additional factors that must be considered also. Following is a checklist of those added qualifiers that you will need to research before selecting an electrical tech school.<\/p>\n
Accreditation. <\/strong>A large number of electrician trade schools have acquired either a regional or a national accreditation. They can acquire Institutional Accreditation, which involves the school’s programs overall, or Programmatic Accreditation, which pertains to an individual program, such as electrical technology. Make sure that the Old Hickory TN school is accredited by a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting organization, for instance the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. Along with helping ensure that you get a quality education, it may help in acquiring financial assistance or student loans, which are frequently unavailable for non-accredited schools. Also, many states mandate that the electrician training course be accredited in order to be approved for licensing.<\/p>\nHigh Completion and Placement Rates. <\/strong>Ask the electrician training programs you are considering what their completion rates are. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students who enroll in and finish the program. A lower completion rate might suggest that students were unhappy with the course and dropped out. It might also suggest that the teachers were not qualified to train the students. It’s similarly important that the schools have higher job placement rates. Older and\/or more reputable schools may have a broader directory of alumni, which can mean 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 industry, but also that it has the network of contacts to help Old Hickory TN students obtain apprenticeships or jobs.<\/p>\nApprenticeship Programs. <\/strong>A large number of electrician training programs are taught in conjunction 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 electrical contractors or labor unions. Find out if the schools you are comparing have referring partnerships with Old Hickory TN area electricians or electrical contractors. An apprenticeship not only offers a valuable experience by supplying hands-on training, but it also provides employment opportunities and helps to establish relationships in the regional electrician professional community.<\/p>\nModern Facilities. <\/strong>Make sure that the school facilities and the equipment that you will be trained on are up-to-date and what you will be working with in the field. If you are presently in an internship or an apprenticeship, check with the electrical tech you are working with concerning what you should be looking for. If not, ask a local Old Hickory TN electrical contracting company if they can provide some tips. Additionally bear in mind that unless you can move, the school needs to be within commuting distance of your Old Hickory home. Remember that if you decide to attend an out-of-state school, besides the added moving costs there can be increased tuition fees compared to in-state residents.<\/p>\nSmaller Classes. <\/strong>It’s desirable that you receive as much personalized training as possible, which can be challenging in larger 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. Speak with a few of the students and get their comments regarding class sizes and instruction. Finally, talk to a few of the teachers and learn what their level of experience is and what degrees or certifications they hold.<\/p>\nFlexible Scheduling. <\/strong>Verify that the class schedules for the schools you are evaluating are flexible enough to handle your needs. If you can only go to classes at night or on weekends near Old Hickory TN, verify that the programs you are considering offer those choices. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, make sure that the school you select offers part-time enrollment. Finally, check out what the protocol is to make-up classes should you miss any due to work, sickness or family emergencies.<\/p>\nConsidering Attending an Electrician School near Old Hickory TN?<\/h3>\n
Following is a little bit of background information about the Old Hickory TN area.<\/p>\n
Old Hickory, Tennessee<\/h3>
This area is located in the Hadley Bend section of eastern Davidson County. The area is probably best known for being a former company town as the site of a large DuPont plant. Many of the houses in Old Hickory were built to house DuPont employees and supervisors in the early days of the factory's existence.[1]<\/p>
Old Hickory is bordered by the Cumberland River on the north and west, Old Hickory Lake to the east, and the former city of Lakewood to the south. To the north of the area is also the location of Old Hickory Lock and Dam. The main street through the area is Old Hickory Boulevard (Tennessee State Route 45).\n<\/p>
The area today is the site of a country club, large golf course, city park, a Chamber of Commerce, and the DuPont plant, which has been mostly shut down but continues to employ a few hundred workers. The Nashville National Weather Service Forecast Office is located just to the southeast in nearby Wilson County, but it has an Old Hickory mailing address.\n<\/p><\/div>\n