Questions to Ask Electrician Training Schools<\/strong><\/h3>\nWhen you have made a decision to obtain a certificate, diploma or degree, you can begin to focus your school options. Because there are so many electrician tech and trade schools in the Albany NY area, it’s essential to have a checklist of qualifications that each program must meet. The first 2 that we mentioned were location and the cost of tuition. If you have an interest in earning an online degree, then that needs to be a feature that your final school offers. And although all three qualifiers may be important when making your determination, there are additional variables that must be considered also. Following is a checklist of those additional qualifiers that you will need to analyze prior to selecting an electrical technical school.<\/p>\n
Accreditation. <\/strong>A large number of electrician vocational programs have received either a regional or a national accreditation. They can earn Institutional Accreditation, which focuses on the school’s programs overall, or Programmatic Accreditation, which pertains to a specific program, for example electrical technology. Make sure that the Albany NY school and program are accredited by a U.S. Department of Education approved accrediting organization, which includes the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. In addition to helping ensure that you acquire a quality education, it can help in securing financial assistance or student loans, which are frequently not available for non-accredited schools. Furthermore, some states require that the electrician training program be accredited for it to be approved for licensing.<\/p>\nHigh Completion and Placement Rates. <\/strong>Ask the electrician schools 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 low completion rate could indicate that students were unhappy with the course and dropped out. It may also suggest that the teachers were not qualified to train the students. It’s similarly important that the schools have high job placement rates. Older and\/or more reputable schools may have a broader directory of alumni, which can produce more contacts for the school to use for their apprenticeship and job placement programs. A high job placement rate will not only affirm that the school has an excellent reputation within the field, but also that it has the network of contacts to help Albany NY graduates acquire apprenticeships or jobs.<\/p>\nApprenticeship Programs. <\/strong>Many electrician trade programs are taught along with an internship or an apprenticeship program. Those participating vocational and technical schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program inside their network of electrical companies or labor unions. Check if the schools you are comparing have working relationships with Albany NY area electricians or electrical specialists. An apprenticeship not only offers a rewarding experience by providing practical training, but it also supplies job opportunities and helps to build relationships in the area electrician professional community.<\/p>\nModern Facilities. <\/strong>Make sure that the campus facilities and the equipment that you will be trained on are up-to-date and what you will be working with on the job. If you are already in an internship or an apprenticeship, check with the electrical specialist you are working under regarding what you should be expecting. If not, ask a local Albany NY electrical contracting company if they can provide some tips. Also bear in mind that unless you are willing to relocate, the school must be within driving distance of your Albany home. Take note that if you decide to attend an out-of-state school, besides the added relocation costs there might be higher tuition fees compared to in-state residents.<\/p>\nSmaller Classes. <\/strong>It’s important that you get as much individualized instruction as possible, which can be challenging in bigger classes. Ask if you can monitor some of the classes so that you can observe how large they are and experience the interaction between instructors and students. Talk with some of the students and get their feedback concerning class sizes and instruction. Finally, talk to a few of the instructors and find out 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 are only able to attend classes at night or on weekends near Albany NY, confirm that the programs you are reviewing provide those options. If you can only attend part-time, make sure that the school you select permits part-time enrollment. Additionally, check out what the policy is to make-up classes should you miss any due to work, sickness or family emergencies.<\/p>\nConsidering Attending an Electrician School near Albany NY?<\/h3>\n
Following is a little bit of background information about the Albany NY area.<\/p>\n
Albany, New York<\/h3>
Albany (\/\u02c8\u0254\u02d0lb\u0259ni\/\u00a0(\u00a0listen) ALL-b\u0259-nee) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York and the seat of Albany County. Albany is located on the west bank of the Hudson River approximately 10 miles (16\u00a0km) south of its confluence with the Mohawk River and approximately 150 miles (240\u00a0km) north of New York City.\n<\/p>
Albany is known for its rich history, commerce, culture, architecture, and institutions of higher education. Albany constitutes the economic and cultural core of the Capital District of New York State, which comprises the Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area, including the nearby cities and suburbs of Troy, Schenectady, and Saratoga Springs. With a 2013 Census-estimated population of 1.1 million [6] the Capital District is the third-most populous metropolitan region in the state and 38th in the United States.[7][8] As of the 2010 census, the population of Albany was 97,856.\n<\/p>
The area that later became Albany was settled by Dutch colonists who in 1614, built Fort Nassau for fur trading and, in 1624, built Fort Orange. In 1664, the English took over the Dutch settlements, renaming the city as Albany, in honor of the then Duke of Albany, the future James II of England and James VII of Scotland. The city was officially chartered in 1686 under English rule. It became the capital of New York in 1797 following formation of the United States. Albany is one of the oldest surviving settlements of the original British thirteen colonies, and is the longest continuously chartered city in the United States.[9]<\/p><\/div>\n