How to Pick the Right Electrician Technical School near King Of Prussia Pennsylvania
The initial step to learning to be an electrical tradesman or contractor is locating an electrician trade school near King Of Prussia PA. But with numerous vocational schools to choose from, just how do you go about making sure that you enroll in the ideal one? Especially because there are so many variables to examine. For instance, many potential students will begin by searching for schools that are nearby their residence. After they have identified some that are within commuting range, they will select the one with the cheapest tuition. Although location and cost are significant, they are not the sole factors that need to be considered. Also important are the reputations of the schools, their accreditation, in addition to their job placement and graduation rates. These and other qualifications should influence your final decision when selecting an electrician school. We will discuss that checklist in more detail later in this post. But to begin with, let’s talk a little bit about becoming an electrician and the training options that are offered.
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Electrician Degree, Diploma and Certificate Programs
There are three general approaches to get electrician instruction in a technical or vocational school near King Of Prussia PA. You may choose a certificate or diploma program, or earn an Associate Degree. Bachelor’s Degrees are offered at some schools, but are not as prevalent as the first three options. Often these programs are offered combined with an apprenticeship program, which are required by most states in order to be licensed or if you intend to become certified. Following are short summaries of the three most common programs offered.
- Certificate and Diploma Programs are typically offered by Pennsylvania technical and trade schools and require about a year to finish. They furnish a solid foundation and are aimed towards students who want to get into an apprenticeship more quickly as a journeyman electrician.
- Associate Degree Programs take two years to complete and are provided by Pennsylvania community colleges, commonly as an Associate Degree in Electrical Technology. They provide a more comprehensive education while providing the foundation that prepares students to enter into their apprenticeship program.
As earlier stated, Bachelor’s Degrees are available at some Pennsylvania institutions, but are less popular at 4 years than the other shorter programs. Many states require that an apprenticeship of at least 2 years and in most cases four years be carried out prior to licensing. Therefore, most students are anxious to start their paid apprenticeship, particularly if it’s not part of their educational program.
Electrician Certification and Licensing Prerequisites
Electricians in King Of Prussia PA can undertake a multitude of tasks, including testing, installing and replacing electrical systems, and ensuring that the wiring in houses and buildings comply with code standards. After concluding an apprenticeship, journeyman electricians are required to become licensed in most states or municipalities. The duration of apprenticeship differs by state, but generally around four to five years of prior experience is needed before taking the licensing examination. The exams commonly assess electrical theory and general knowledge, along with understanding of the National Electrical Code (NEC). Obtaining certification is also a voluntary way for an electrician to identify her or himself as a experienced and skilled professional. The certifications offered vary by state and can be earned in many specialties, such as cable splicing as an example. The certification process usually involves 3 levels of competency:
- An experience requirement
- Passing a written exam
- Passing a practical exam
Examples of certifying organizations include the National Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (NJATC) as well as the National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET). It’s imperative that the electrician vocational school that you select not only provides a strong academic foundation, but also helps prepare you for passing any certification and licensing exams that you may need to take in the future.
Attending Electrician Online Schools
An alternative that you may have considered is choosing an electrician online school to earn a degree or a certificate. While online schools have become more accepted as a way of attending class without needing to travel, in this case they are not entirely internet based. Pretty much all electrician training programs require partial attendance on-campus to get practical hands-on training. But since the remainder of the classes may be accessed online, distance learning can be a more convenient alternative for students that have limited time for schooling. And as an added benefit numerous online degree programs have a lower tuition cost compared to their traditional competitors. Driving expenses from King Of Prussia PA are also minimized and a portion of the study materials can be accessed online also. All of these advantages can make online electrician trade schools more economical and accessible. And many are fully accredited, which we will cover in our questions to ask checklist.
Things to Ask Electrician Technical Schools
Once you have made a decision to earn a diploma, certificate or degree, you can begin to narrow down your training options. Since there are so many electrician trade and vocational schools in the King Of Prussia PA region, it’s imperative to have a checklist of criteria that each program must meet. The initial two that we talked about were location and tuition expense. If you have an interest in earning an online degree, then that must be an option that your final school offers. And while all three qualifiers may be critical when making your decision, there are other variables that need to be considered also. Following is a checklist of those added qualifications that you will need to analyze prior to selecting an electrical trade school.
Accreditation. Numerous electrician trade schools have attained either a regional or a national accreditation. They may receive Institutional Accreditation, which focuses on the school’s programs as a whole, or Programmatic Accreditation, which relates to a specific program, for example electrical technology. Make certain that the King Of Prussia PA school and program are accredited by a U.S. Department of Education approved accrediting organization, for example the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. In addition to helping make certain that you receive a quality education, it may assist in acquiring financial aid or student loans, which are in many cases unavailable for non-accredited programs. Furthermore, a number of states require that the electrician training course be accredited for it to qualify for licensing.
High Completion and Placement Rates. Ask the electrician schools 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 may suggest that students were unhappy with the course and dropped out. It may also mean that the instructors were not qualified to train the students. It’s also important that the schools have high job placement rates. Older and/or more reputable schools may have a more extensive directory of graduates, which can produce more contacts for the school to employ for their apprenticeship and job placement programs. A high job placement rate will not only validate that the school has an excellent reputation within the field, but additionally that it has the network of contacts to assist King Of Prussia PA graduates secure apprenticeships or employment.
Apprenticeship Programs. Most electrician vocational programs are taught together with an internship or an apprenticeship program. Those participating trade and technical schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program inside their network of electrical businesses or trade unions. Find out if the schools you are reviewing have referring relationships with King Of Prussia PA area electricians or electrical contractors. An apprenticeship not only provides a valuable experience by supplying hands-on training, but it also furnishes job opportunities and helps to form relationships in the area electrician professional community.
Modern Facilities. Make certain that the campus facilities and the tools that you will be trained on are up-to-date and what you will be using in the field. If you are already in an internship or an apprenticeship, check with the electrical specialist you are working with concerning what you should be expecting. Otherwise, ask a local King Of Prussia PA electrical company if they can give you some pointers. Additionally keep in mind that unless you can move, the school needs to be within commuting distance of your King Of Prussia residence. Remember that if you decide to enroll in an out-of-state school, besides the added moving costs there may be higher tuition fees compared to in-state residents.
Smaller Classes. It’s desirable that you receive as much individualized instruction as possible, which can be difficult in larger classes. Ask if you can monitor some of the classes so that you can observe how large they are and experience the interaction between students and teachers. Talk with several of the students and get their feedback concerning class sizes and instruction. Finally, talk to some of the teachers and learn what their level of experience is and what degrees or certifications they have earned.
Flexible Scheduling. Make sure that the class schedules for the programs you are reviewing are flexible enough to fulfill your needs. If you are only able to attend classes at night or on weekends near King Of Prussia PA, verify that the schools you are considering offer those options. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, make certain that the school you select offers part-time enrollment. Additionally, find out what the protocol is to make-up classes should you miss any due to work, sickness or family emergencies.
Electrical Training King Of Prussia Pennsylvania
Picking the ideal electrician trade school will undoubtedly be the most critical decision you will make to launch your new trade. You originally came to this website due to an interest in Electrical Training and wanting more information on the topic Classes For Electrician. But as we have discussed in this article, there are many things that you will need to evaluate and compare among the schools you are looking at. It’s a prerequisite that any electrician tech school that you are evaluating includes a considerable amount of hands-on training. Classes should be small in size and each student must have their personal equipment to train with. Classroom teaching needs to provide a real-world frame of reference, and the curriculum should be up-to-date and conform with industry standards. Courses vary in duration and the kind of credential provided, so you will have to ascertain what length of program and credential will best serve your needs. Every program provides different possibilities for certification as well. Perhaps the best approach to research your short list of schools is to go to each campus and speak with the teachers and students. Take the time to attend some classes. Inspect the campus and facilities. Make sure that you are confident that the school you choose is the ideal one for you. With the right training, effort and dedication, the end outcome will be a new trade as a professional electrician in King Of Prussia PA.
More Electric Locations in Pennsylvania
King of Prussia, Pennsylvania
King of Prussia (also referred to as KOP)[3] is a census-designated place in Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population was 19,936. The community took its name in the 18th century from a local tavern named the King of Prussia Inn, which was named after King Frederick the Great of Prussia. Like the rest of Montgomery County, King of Prussia continues to experience rapid development. One of the largest shopping malls in the United States, King of Prussia, is located here. Also located here is the headquarters of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Region I. King of Prussia is considered to be an edge city of Philadelphia, consisting of large amounts of retail and office space situated at the convergence of four highways.
The eponymous King of Prussia Inn was originally constructed as a cottage in 1719 by the Welsh Quakers William and Janet Rees, founders of Reesville. The cottage was converted to an inn in 1769 and did a steady business in colonial times as it was approximately a day's travel by horse from Philadelphia. Settlers headed west to Ohio would sleep at the inn on their first night on the road. In 1774 the Rees family hired James Berry to manage the inn, which henceforth became known as "Berry's Tavern". General George Washington first visited the tavern on Thanksgiving Day in 1777 while the Continental Army was encamped at Whitemarsh; a few weeks later Washington and the army bivouacked at nearby Valley Forge.[4]
Parker's spy map,[5] created by a Tory sympathizer of the Kingdom of Great Britain, listed the inn as "Berry's" in 1777, but a local petition in 1786 identified it as the "King of Prussia". It was possibly renamed in honor of Benjamin Franklin's pro-American satirical essay "An Edict by the King of Prussia".[6] At some point a wooden signboard of the inn depicted King Frederick II (Frederick the Great) of Prussia. The inn is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[7]
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