If it weren’t for electricians, you wouldn’t be reading this right now. You also wouldn’t have access to the Internet or your smartphone. It can be nerve-wracking to think of a world without electricity. Still, everything’s taken care of thanks to the skills earned in electrician courses by nearly one million licensed electricians in the United States.
According to the Department of Labor, a career as an electrician is a pretty good investment in your future. Over the coming years, the job field will grow by an impressive eight percent. If you work hard and put the time in, you could easily find yourself in the top 10 percent of earners, netting almost $100,000 a year.
As with careers like welders, plumbers, and other trade school careers, people will always need a good electrician’s assistance.
What You Need to Be an Electrician
So, you want to explore the possibility of becoming an electrician. First, you have to determine a few things and see if you can make the grade. Below are a few concrete qualifications and milestones you need to achieve to give you a better chance.
Qualifications
High School Diploma
To be welcomed among the ranks of talented electricians in the United States you’ll need your high school diploma. As long as you have your high school diploma or GED, employers will be more likely to hire you.
However, high school diplomas aren’t the be-all-end-all in terms of setting yourself up for success. You can enhance your diploma by acquiring a trade school degree in an electrician training program as well.
Apprenticeship Program
Apprenticeships are extremely valuable. Not only do you get a good feel for a full-time career as an electrician, but it’s a surefire way to get hired. These are on-the-job electrician training programs.
Filled with valuable job training and an ordinary crash course in electrical theory, apprenticeship programs can be more beneficial than school programs.
Certificate Programs and Electrician Courses
These are great additions to your high school diploma and apprenticeships. These prove that you have a working and up to date knowledge of what every journeyman electrician should know about the field. There are multiple electrician training programs for numerous aspects, like knowing the national electrical code and more.
Electrician Courses to Explore
So, what if you’re thinking of becoming an electrician but you’re not sure if you want to make a huge life decision? Luckily, there’s an excellent middle-ground by exploring some solid online electrician courses.
Different courses and schools allow you to explore the job’s nuances without fully committing to a job or apprenticeship program. There is no shortage of options to consider with electrical courses. Let’s see what notable electrician courses you can take right now.
Online Electrician Training from Penn Foster
Penn Foster College offers an impressive amount of various diplomas. It’s a college that offers everything: career diplomas, associate degrees, bachelor’s degrees, and more. Its online electrician training program is a great place to start exploring a career as an electrician.
All of Penn Foster’s courses are flexible and asynchronous, meaning that you choose when to start and complete your work. It has around-the-clock advisors, career coaches, and other support staff to cater to any need.
In Penn Foster’s online electrician training program, you’ll get advice and information straight from electrical experts. Some of the standout courses in the program are:
- Electrical fundamentals
- Electrical devices
- HVAC systems
- The national electrical code
- Conduits, cables, and conductors
- Reading Electrical Drawings, Schematics, and Blueprints
By the end of these various electrician courses, you’ll be at the apprentice level.
Stratford Career Institute’s Electrician Classes
Stratford’s online electrician training program wants you to be a master in every aspect of the field. From knowing how to fix simple household circuits to industrial electrical equipment, Stratford wants you to know it all.
Stratford starts with a few primary introductory sections, but quickly moves on to nearly everything an electrician should know. They have courses dedicated to the science behind electricity and electrician courses in motors, friction, heat, pressure, light, and magnetism.
Stratford is committed to providing you with the latest materials to learn and has an entirely free and open online learning schedule.
Schools Offering Electrician Education Courses
This is a fantastic resource to look up schools that offer electrician courses near you. While many great institutions provide online learning programs, looking for something nearby may be more of your style. This is more of a database for electrician courses.
You can look up different schools and programs by state and find something that works for you. It also offers vital information related to becoming a journeyman electrician and locations in which to get your state license and start your career as an electrician.
Start Your Career: How to Make the Most of Electrician Courses
Once you complete a few electrician courses, you’ll have a better idea of what the field can offer you. You can master everything from electrical wiring, electrical theory to national electric code. If you like what you have learned in different electrical courses, you can pursue your state license as an electrician and make it official.
Just remember that you need a high school diploma and some apprenticeship program experience to really solidify your place in a rewarding profession.
About us: Career Karma is a platform designed to help job seekers find, research, and connect with job training programs to advance their careers. Learn about the CK publication.
