How to Pick the Best Electrician Trade School near Dover New Hampshire
The initial step to learning to be an electrical contractor or tradesman is enrolling in an electrician trade school near Dover NH. But with numerous technical schools to choose from, just how do you tackle making sure that you enroll in the right one? Particularly since there are a number of factors to examine. For example, some potential students will commence by searching for schools that are nearby their home. After they have identified a few that are within commuting distance, they will pick the one with the cheapest tuition. Even though cost and location are important, they are not the only factors that should be evaluated. Also important are the reputations of the schools, their accreditation, in addition to their graduation and job placement rates. These and other qualifications should influence your final decision when choosing an electrician school. We will address that checklist in more detail later in this post. But to begin with, let’s review a little bit about becoming an electrician and the training choices that are available.
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Electrician Certificate, Diploma and Degree Options
There are three general approaches to get electrician instruction in a trade or technical school near Dover NH. You can choose a certificate or diploma program, or obtain an Associate Degree. Bachelor’s Degrees are offered at some schools, but are not as prevalent as the other three options. Frequently these programs are made available together with an apprenticeship, which are mandated by the majority of states to be licensed or if you wish to earn certification. Following are short descriptions of the three most prevalent programs available.
- Certificate and Diploma Programs are usually provided by New Hampshire trade and technical schools and take approximately a year to finish. They provide a solid foundation and are geared towards students who would like to enter an apprenticeship more quickly as a journeyman electrician.
- Associate Degrees take 2 years to finish and are provided by New Hampshire junior or community colleges, commonly as an Associate Degree in Electrical Technology. They furnish a more comprehensive education while providing the foundation that readies students to enter into their apprenticeship program.
As earlier stated, Bachelor’s Degrees are offered at some New Hampshire colleges, 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 4 years be completed before licensing. For that reason, many students are anxious to begin their paid apprenticeship, particularly if it’s not part of their academic program.
Electrician Certification and Licensing Guidelines
Electricians in Dover NH can carry out a wide range of tasks, such as installing, replacing and testing electrical systems, and ensuring that the wiring in houses and buildings comply with code standards. After concluding an apprenticeship, journeyman electricians are mandated to be licensed in the majority of municipalities and states. The length of apprenticeship varies by state, but commonly about four to five years of experience is required before taking the licensing exam. The exams usually test general knowledge and electrical theory, as well as knowledge of the National Electrical Code (NEC). Obtaining certification is also a voluntary way for an electrician to differentiate her or himself as a skilled and experienced professional. The certifications offered vary by state and can be earned in many specializations, including cable splicing as an example. The certification process in most cases entails 3 levels of competency:
- An experience requirement
- Passing a written exam
- Passing a practical exam
Examples of certifying agencies include the National Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (NJATC) and also the National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET). It’s crucial that the electrician vocational school that you choose not only furnishes a strong educational foundation, but also helps ready you for passing any certification and licensing examinations that you may be required to take in the future.
Attending Electrician Schools Online
A possibility that you may have considered is selecting an online electrician school to earn a degree or a certificate. Even though online training programs are becoming 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 some attendance on campus to receive hands-on practical training. But since the rest of the classes can be accessed online, internet learning may be a more accommodating choice for individuals that have limited time for education. And as a bonus many online schools have a cheaper tuition cost compared to their on campus counterparts. Commuting costs from Dover NH are also reduced and a portion of the study materials may be accessed online as well. Each of these advantages can make online electrician trade schools more economical and convenient. And many are fully accredited, which we will address in our due diligence checklist.
Topics to Ask Electrician Trade Schools
Once you have made a decision to obtain a diploma, certificate or degree, you can start to focus your school options. Since there are numerous electrician tech and trade schools in the Dover NH region, it’s important to have a checklist of qualifications that each school must satisfy. The initial two that we mentioned were location and tuition expense. If you have an interest in earning an degree online, then that must be a feature that your chosen school offers. And even though all three qualifiers may be important when making your determination, there are other factors that must be considered also. Following is a checklist of those additional qualifications that you will need to research before enrolling in an electrical technical school.
Accreditation. Numerous electrician technical programs have acquired either a regional or a national accreditation. They may earn Institutional Accreditation, which involves the school’s programs as a whole, or Programmatic Accreditation, which relates to an individual program, for instance electrical technology. Make sure that the Dover NH school is accredited by a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting organization, such as the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. Along with helping guarantee that you acquire a superior education, it may help in securing financial assistance or student loans, which are in many cases unavailable for non-accredited programs. Furthermore, many states require that the electrician training course be accredited for it to be approved for licensing.
High Completion and Placement Rates. Ask the electrician schools you are reviewing what their completion rates are. The completion rate is the percentage of students who enroll in and finish the course. A lower completion rate might indicate that students were disappointed with the course and dropped out. It might also indicate that the teachers were not qualified to train the students. It’s also imperative 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 utilize for their apprenticeship and job placement programs. A high job placement rate will not only confirm that the school has an excellent reputation within the trade, but also that it has the network of contacts to help Dover NH students obtain apprenticeships or jobs.
Apprenticeship Programs. Most electrician trade programs are taught in conjunction with an apprenticeship or an internship program. Those participating trade and technical schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program within their network of electrical contractors or labor unions. Check if the schools you are considering have working partnerships with Dover NH area electricians or electrical contractors. An apprenticeship not only offers a valuable experience by furnishing practical training, but it also provides job opportunities and helps to build relationships in the local electrician professional community.
Modern Facilities. Make sure that the school facilities and the equipment that you will be trained on are state-of-the-art and what you will be using on the job. If you are currently in an internship or an apprenticeship, check with the electrical tech you are working with regarding what you should be expecting. Otherwise, ask a local Dover NH electrical contractor if they can give you some tips. Additionally keep in mind that unless you can move, the school needs to be within driving distance of your Dover home. Remember 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.
Smaller Classes. It’s important that you receive as much one-on-one instruction as possible, which can be challenging in larger classes. Ask if you can sit in on a couple of the classes so that you can see how large they are and experience the interaction between teachers and students. Speak with several of the students and get their feedback regarding class sizes and instruction. Finally, talk to a few of the teachers 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 schools you are reviewing are flexible enough to handle your needs. If you can only go to classes in the evening or on weekends near Dover NH, confirm that the schools you are reviewing provide those choices. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, make sure that the school you select permits part-time enrollment. Finally, find out what the policy is to make-up classes should you miss any due to work, illness or family emergencies.
How To Be An Electrician Dover New Hampshire
Selecting the right electrician training program will probably be the most important decision you will make to begin your new profession. You originally came to this website due to an interest in How To Be An Electrician and wanting more information on the topic Electrician Diploma. But as we have addressed in this article, there are a number of things that you will need to evaluate and compare among the schools you are reviewing. It’s a necessity that any electrical tech school that you are reviewing includes a good deal of hands-on instruction. Classes should be small in size and every student must have their personal equipment to train with. Classroom education should offer a real-world context, and the course of study should be current and in-line with industry standards. Training programs differ in duration and the type of credential offered, so you will need to determine what length of program and degree or certificate will best fulfill your needs. Each training program offers unique possibilities for certification also. Probably the best way to research your final list of schools is to visit each campus and talk with the faculty and students. Take the time to sit in on a few classes. Tour the campus and facilities. Make sure that you are confident that the program you choose is the best one for you. With the proper training, hard work and dedication, the final result will be a new trade as a professional electrician in Dover NH.
More Electric Locations in New Hampshire
Dover, New Hampshire
Dover is a city in Strafford County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 29,987 at the 2010 census,[2] the largest in the New Hampshire Seacoast region. The population was estimated at 31,398 in 2017.[3] It is the county seat of Strafford County, and home to Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, the Woodman Institute Museum, and the Children's Museum of New Hampshire.
First recorded in its Latinised form of Portus Dubris, the name derives from the Brythonic word for waters (dwfr in Middle Welsh). The same element is present in the town's French (Douvres) and Modern Welsh (Dofr) forms.
The first known European to explore the region was Martin Pring from Bristol, England, in 1603. In 1623, William and Edward Hilton settled Cochecho Plantation, adopting its Abenaki name, making Dover the oldest permanent settlement in New Hampshire, and seventh in the United States.[4] One of the colony's four original townships, it then included Durham, Madbury, Newington, Lee, Somersworth and Rollinsford.
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