How to Become an Electrician in Lake Charles Louisiana
The initial step to learning to be an electrical contractor or tradesman is finding an electrician trade school near Lake Charles LA. But with so many technical schools to choose from, just how do you approach making sure that you enroll in the ideal one? Especially since there are a number of variables to evaluate. For example, some potential students will start by looking for schools that are nearby their residence. When they have located some that are within driving distance, they will decide on the one with the lowest tuition. Even though cost and location are of importance, they are not the only factors that need to be considered. Also critical are the accreditation and reputations of the schools, along with their job placement and graduation rates. These and additional qualifications should help mold your ultimate decision when choosing an electrician school. We will discuss that checklist in more detail later in this post. But to begin with, let’s review a little bit about being an electrician and the instructional choices that are offered.
Electrician Certificate, Diploma and Degree Programs near Lake Charles LA
There are several options to obtain electrician training in a trade or technical school near Lake Charles LA. You may enroll in a certificate or diploma program, or obtain an Associate Degree. Bachelor’s Degrees are available at certain schools, but are not as common as the other three options. In many cases these programs are offered together with an apprenticeship, which are mandated by most states in order to become licensed or if you would like to become certified. Following are short descriptions of the three most typical programs available.
- Certificate and Diploma Programs are typically provided by Louisiana trade and technical schools and require approximately a year to finish. They provide a good foundation and are aimed towards individuals who would like to get into an apprenticeship faster as a journeyman electrician.
- Associate Degrees require two years to complete and are offered by Louisiana junior or community colleges, usually as an Associate Degree in Electrical Technology. They provide a more well-rounded education while providing the foundation that readies students to enter into their apprenticeship program.
As previously mentioned, Bachelor’s Degrees are accessible at some Louisiana colleges, but are less preferred at 4 years than the other briefer programs. The majority of states mandate that an apprenticeship of no less than 2 years and more typically 4 years be performed prior to licensing. Therefore, the majority of students are eager to commence their paid apprenticeship, particularly if it’s not part of their academic program.
Electrician License and Certification Prerequisites
Electricians in Lake Charles LA can perform a vast array of functions, including testing, installing and replacing electrical systems, and making sure that the wiring in buildings and homes are up to code standards. After finishing an apprenticeship, journeyman electricians are required to be licensed in the majority of municipalities and states. The duration of apprenticeship varies by state, but usually around four to five years of prior experience is called for before taking the licensing examination. The exams usually evaluate general knowledge and electrical theory, as well as understanding of the National Electrical Code (NEC). Receiving certification is also a voluntary method for an electrician to identify her or himself as a experienced and skilled professional. The certifications available vary by state and may be acquired in numerous specializations, such as cable splicing as an example. The certification process usually entails 3 levels of proficiency:
- An experience requirement
- Passing a written exam
- Passing a practical exam
Examples of certifying agencies include the National Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (NJATC) along with the National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET). It’s important that the electrician vocational school that you choose not only provides a solid educational foundation, but also helps prep you for passing any licensing and certification examinations that you might be required to take in the future.
Attending Electrician Schools Online in Lake Charles LA
An alternative that you may have looked at is enrolling in an electrician online school to earn a degree or a certificate. While online training programs are becoming more popular as a means of attending class without needing to travel, in this situation they are not entirely internet based. Pretty much all electrician training programs require some attendance on campus to receive practical hands-on training. But since the rest of the classes may be accessed online, internet learning might be a more accommodating alternative for students that have limited time for schooling. And as a bonus many online degree programs have a reduced tuition cost compared to their on-campus alternatives. Commuting costs from Lake Charles LA are also minimized and a portion of the study materials may be accessed online as well. Each of these benefits can make electrician online vocational schools more economical and accessible. And a number are fully accredited, which we will cover in our questions to ask checklist.
Things to Ask Electrician Technical Schools
When 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 tech and trade schools in the Lake Charles LA region, it’s essential to have a checklist of qualifications that each school must meet. The first two that we talked about were location and the cost of tuition. If you are interested in earning an degree online, then that must be an option that your chosen school offers. And even though all three qualifiers may be crucial when making your decision, there are other variables that must be taken into account also. Below is a checklist of those added qualifications that you will need to analyze before selecting an electrical technical school.
Accreditation. A large number of electrician trade programs have acquired either a regional or a national accreditation. They can acquire Institutional Accreditation, which involves the school’s programs as a whole, or Programmatic Accreditation, which relates to a specific program, such as electrical technology. Verify that the Lake Charles LA program and school are accredited by a U.S. Department of Education approved accrediting agency, which includes the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. In addition to helping make certain that you receive an excellent education, it may help in securing financial aid or student loans, which are frequently not available for non-accredited schools. Furthermore, many states require that the electrician training program be accredited for it to qualify for licensing.
High Completion and Placement Rates. Ask the electrician training programs you are reviewing what their completion rates are. The completion rate is the percentage of students who enroll in and complete the course. A low completion rate could signify that students were disappointed with the course and dropped out. It may also indicate that the instructors were not qualified to train 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 directory of graduates, which may result in more contacts for the school to use 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 trade, but additionally that it has the network of contacts to assist Lake Charles LA graduates obtain apprenticeships or jobs.
Apprenticeship Programs. Most electrician vocational programs are taught along with an internship or an apprenticeship program. Those participating vocational and trade schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program inside their network of electrical companies or trade unions. Check if the schools you are reviewing have referring relationships with Lake Charles LA area electricians or electrical professionals. An apprenticeship not only provides a valuable experience by supplying hands-on training, but it also furnishes employment opportunities and helps to form relationships in the area electrician professional community.
Modern Facilities. Make sure that the school facilities and the equipment that you will be instructed on are up-to-date and what you will be using on the job. If you are already in an internship or an apprenticeship, talk to the electrical tech you are working under concerning what you should be looking for. Otherwise, ask a local Lake Charles LA electrical contractor if they can give you some pointers. Additionally bear in mind that unless you are willing to move, the school must be within driving distance of your Lake Charles home. Take note that if you decide to attend an out-of-state school, besides the added moving costs there may be higher tuition charges compared to in-state residents.
Smaller Classes. It’s desirable that you get as much individualized training as possible, which can be challenging in bigger classes. Ask if you can sit in on a few of the classes so that you can see how big they are and experience the interaction between instructors and students. Talk with several of the students and get their comments regarding class sizes and instruction. Last, talk to some of the instructors and find out what their level of experience is and what certifications or degrees they hold.
Flexible Scheduling. Make sure that the class schedules for the programs you are reviewing are flexible enough to handle your needs. If you are only able to attend classes in the evening or on weekends near Lake Charles LA, confirm that the programs you are looking at provide those options. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, make certain that the school you select permits part-time enrollment. Finally, check out what the protocol is to make-up classes should you miss any because of work, illness or family emergencies.
Considering Attending an Electrician School near Lake Charles LA?
Following is a little bit of background information about the Lake Charles LA area.
Lake Charles, Louisiana
Lake Charles (French: Lac Charles) is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcasieu Parish, it is a major industrial, cultural, and educational center in the southwest region of the state.
As of the 2010 census, the population was 71,993.[5] Lake Charles is the principal city of the Lake Charles Metropolitan Statistical Area, having a population of 202,040.[6] It is the larger principal city of the Lake Charles-Jennings Combined Statistical Area, with a population of 225,235. The 2010 population of the five-parish area of Southwest Louisiana was 292,619.[7]
It is considered a regionally significant center of petrochemical refining, gaming, tourism, and education, being home to McNeese State University and Sowela Technical Community College. Because of the lakes and waterways throughout the city, metropolitan Lake Charles is often referred to as the Lake Area.
Enroll in the Right Electrical Vocational School near Lake Charles LA
Choosing the ideal electrician trade school will undoubtedly be the most important decision you will make to launch your new trade. As we have discussed in this article, there are a number of things that you will need to examine and compare among the training programs you are looking at. It’s a must that any electrician training program that you are assessing includes a lot of hands-on training. Classes should be small in size and every student must have their personal equipment to train with. Classroom education needs to provide a real-world context, and the training program should be current and in-line with industry standards. Courses vary in duration and the kind of credential offered, so you will have to decide what length of program and degree or certificate will best satisfy your needs. Each program offers different options for certification as well. Probably the best way to research your final list of schools is to go to each campus and talk with the students and faculty. Take the time to attend some classes. Inspect the campus and facilities. Make certain that you are confident that the training program you choose is the ideal one for you. With the proper training, effort and dedication, the end result will be a new occupation as a professional electrician in Lake Charles LA.
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