Topics to Ask Electrician Trade Schools<\/strong><\/h3>\nOnce you have decided to obtain a certificate, diploma or degree, you can start to focus your training options. Considering that there are so many electrician tech and trade schools in the La Crosse WI region, it’s imperative to have a checklist of qualifications that each program must satisfy. The first two that we mentioned were location and the cost of tuition. If you have an interest in earning an online degree, then that must be an option that your final school offers. And even though all three qualifiers may be critical when making your determination, there are additional variables that need to be considered also. Below is a checklist of those additional qualifications that you will need to assess prior to enrolling in an electrical technical school.<\/p>\n
Accreditation. <\/strong>A large number of electrician trade programs have attained either a regional or a national accreditation. They may receive Institutional Accreditation, which involves the school’s programs as a whole, or Programmatic Accreditation, which pertains to a specific program, such as electrical technology. Verify that the La Crosse WI program is accredited by a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting organization, for example the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. In addition to helping ensure that you acquire an excellent education, it can assist in securing financial assistance or student loans, which are frequently not available for non-accredited programs. Furthermore, a number of states require that the electrician training program be accredited for it to qualify 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 percentage of students who enroll in and finish the program. A low completion rate might indicate that students were unhappy with the program and dropped out. It may also suggest that the instructors were not qualified to instruct the students. It’s similarly essential that the schools have high job placement rates. Older and\/or more reputable schools may have a more extensive list of graduates, which may produce more contacts for the school to use for their apprenticeship and job placement programs. A high job placement rate can not only validate that the school has an excellent reputation within the trade, but also that it has the network of contacts to help La Crosse WI grads acquire apprenticeships or jobs.<\/p>\nApprenticeship Programs. <\/strong>Numerous electrician trade programs are taught in conjunction with an apprenticeship or an internship program. Those participating vocational and technical schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program within their network of electrician businesses or labor unions. Find out if the schools you are considering have working relationships with La Crosse WI area electricians or electrical professionals. An apprenticeship not only provides a rewarding experience by supplying practical training, but it also supplies job opportunities and helps to establish relationships in the area electrician professional community.<\/p>\nModern Facilities. <\/strong>Confirm that the school facilities and the equipment that you will be trained 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, consult with the electrical specialist you are working under regarding what you should be looking for. If not, ask a local La Crosse WI electrical company if they can give you some pointers. Additionally bear in mind that unless you are able to relocate, the school needs to be within commuting distance of your La Crosse home. Remember that if you decide to attend an out-of-state school, besides the added moving costs there might be higher tuition fees compared to in-state residents.<\/p>\nSmaller Classes. <\/strong>It’s desirable that you get as much individualized instruction as possible, which can be difficult 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 to some of the students and get their comments relating to class sizes and instruction. Last, talk with a few of the teachers and learn what their level of experience is and what degrees or certifications they have earned.<\/p>\nFlexible Scheduling. <\/strong>Confirm that the class schedules for the programs you are assessing are flexible enough to fulfill your needs. If you are only able to go to classes in the evening or on weekends near La Crosse WI, verify that the schools you are reviewing provide those choices. If you can only attend part-time, make sure that the school you select allows part-time enrollment. Finally, check out what the protocol is to make-up classes should you miss any because of work, sickness or family issues.<\/p>\nConsidering Attending an Electrician School near La Crosse WI?<\/h3>\n
Following is a little bit of background information about the La Crosse WI area.<\/p>\n
La Crosse, Wisconsin<\/h3>
The city's estimated population in 2016 was 52,109.[7] The city forms the core of and is the principal city in the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of La Crosse County and Houston County, Minnesota, with a combined population of 135,298.[8] La Crosse is home to the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Viterbo University, and Western Technical College. A regional technology and medical hub, La Crosse has received high rankings from some magazines in health, well-being, quality of life, and education.[6][9][10][11]<\/p>
The first Europeans to see the site of La Crosse were French fur traders who traveled the Mississippi River in the late 17th century. There is no written record of any visit to the site until 1805, when Lt. Zebulon Pike mounted an expedition up the Mississippi River for the United States. Pike recorded the location's name as \"Prairie La Crosse.\" The name originated from the game with sticks that resembled a bishop's crozier or la crosse in French, which was played by Native Americans there.[12][13]<\/p>
The first white settlement at La Crosse occurred in 1841 when Nathan Myrick, a New York native, moved to the village at Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin to work in the fur trade. Myrick was disappointed to find that because many fur traders were already well-entrenched there, there were no openings for him in the trade. As a result, he decided to establish a trading post upriver at the then still unsettled site of Prairie La Crosse. In 1841, he built a temporary trading post on Barron Island (now called Pettibone Park), which lies just west of La Crosse's present downtown. The following year, Myrick relocated the post to the mainland prairie, partnering with H. J. B. Miller to run the outfit.[14]<\/p><\/div>\n