how does one become an electrician?

[Gibson486]

I thought you had to go to school to be one (get a certificate or something...)......I guess not though. My gf's sister's husband just got a job as an electrician.....but all he has is a diploma. I am kind of impressed, actually. $20.hr with just a diploma while living in Kentucky.

 

[Baked]

You need a taser.

 

[IronWing]

http://www.ohbc.ky.gov/fp/els/

 

[Megatomic]

The BEST way is to go through an apprenticeship. I did an I&C tech apprenticeship and learned tons.

 

[JohnCU]

well a BSEE won't help. i have one and people always ask me stuff like can you wire up my house for me?

 

[shortylickens]

To be a professional electrician and make professional money, yes you need a certificate. But you dont go to school to get it.

You indenture yourself to another professional electrician for minimum wage or slightly less and then get a Journeyman certificate after 4 or 6 thousand hours.
You have to get hooked into the Apprentiship program to do it. For only 20 bucks an hour I would guess he doesnt even have his yet.
Once he gets up there he'll be looking at closer to 50 bucks an hour.


EDIT: DAMN!
I should have been the first response. My computer is so messed up it took me 4 whole minutes just to post this. I gotta get the spyware out.

 

[Megatomic]

Originally posted by: shortylickens
To be a professional electrician and make professional money, yes you need a certificate. But you dont go to school to get it.

You indenture yourself to another professional electrician for minimum wage or slightly less and then get a Journeyman certificate after 4 or 6 thousand hours.
You have to get hooked into the Apprentiship program to do it. For only 20 bucks an hour I would guess he doesnt even have his yet.
Once he gets up there he'll be looking at closer to 50 bucks an hour.

Depends on the area and what the local hall has been able to get. Even non union electricians get paid about what the union electricians do. Here in the DFW area it's nowhere near $50/hr, it's in the $20s. The electrician in my shop (the only one, the rest of us are IC&E) gets paid at the same rate as me.

 

[Colt45]

You gotta be a proper electrician's butt buddy for 4 years, then you get your ticket.

Theres a month or two of school every year, as well, iirc.

 

[jaqie]

In some areas you also have to be licensed and bonded to work in that area.

 

[Soccerman06]

It depends on many variables. What kind of electrician, where does the person live, is it composed of union workers or not. Where I live and in every major city, electricians are union and have to join the union otherwise they are pretty much not able to work. At my parents lake place, electricians work on their own, whether they are union or not is up to them all they have to do is be able to pass code.

Union workers have to go through 2-4 years of schooling (depending on what sort of electrician) around here before they can apprentice somewhere for 4 years. Then its another 8 years of being a Journeyman before they can become masters, these are the average times required for each.

Also, you can be a helper with no training for 10-15/hour in smaller towns, but you need some experience in larger towns because unions are funky like that.

 

[JEDI]

Originally posted by: JohnCU
well a BSEE won't help. i have one and people always ask me stuff like can you wire up my house for me?

u can take the state license for electrician w/bsee w/o any other schooling.

else u gota be an apprentice for 4 yrs (8000 hrs) b4 being allowed to take the license. apprentice = work as an electricans helper during the day, and free (usually) electrician school during the nite

 

[JEDI]

Originally posted by: shortylickens
To be a professional electrician and make professional money, yes you need a certificate. But you dont go to school to get it.

You indenture yourself to another professional electrician for minimum wage or slightly less and then get a Journeyman certificate after 4 or 6 thousand hours.
You have to get hooked into the Apprentiship program to do it. For only 20 bucks an hour I would guess he doesnt even have his yet.
Once he gets up there he'll be looking at closer to 50 bucks an hour.


EDIT: DAMN!
I should have been the first response. My computer is so messed up it took me 4 whole minutes just to post this. I gotta get the spyware out.

50/hr?! only if your a master electrician. that's another test above the journeyman test.

Q: What license is necessary to be self-employed as an electrician?
A: When contracting with the public and requesting permits, your business must be licensed as an electrical contractor. Each electrical contractor must employ at least one master electrician. Therefore, if you are a one-person electrical business, you must obtain both an electrical contractor license and a master electrician license.

exception:
union electrician (Local 3) in NYC = $50/hr

next closest (i think) is dc at $35/hr

as long as there is a democrat as mayor (ie: Wash DC), there will ALWAYS be city govt jobs for union electricians.

edit:
oh, non-union get paid about 75% of union

 

[JohnCU]

Originally posted by: JEDI

Originally posted by: JohnCU
well a BSEE won't help. i have one and people always ask me stuff like can you wire up my house for me?

u can take the state license for electrician w/bsee w/o any other schooling.

else u gota be an apprentice for 4 yrs (8000 hrs) b4 being allowed to take the license. apprentice = work as an electricans helper during the day, and free (usually) electrician school during the nite

really? i might look into that.

 

[bctbct]

In my area you dont have to have a license and can work under someone elses. You make more if you have a license though.

 

[shortylickens]

My experience wasnt with NY, though I hear those guys make damn good money.

When I was in the Navy we did a drydock for 9 months in Norfolk.
Plenty of electricians, welders and such running around, getting dick accomplished and complaining about how their lives suck and guys in NY make even more money than they do.

Actually, that might be the key right there. Fat government contracts with union employees.
Thats the way to go.

 

[Gibson486]

I don't know...but 20/hr....man, that's pretty good with just a diploma and being kicked out of the army. You can make 50/hr? Do they work they work regular 40 hr weeks? Geesh, i feel like my EE degree is only making a minimal difference

 

[ponyo]

Originally posted by: Gibson486
I don't know...but 20/hr....man, that's pretty good with just a diploma and being kicked out of the army. You can make 50/hr? Do they work they work regular 40 hr weeks? Geesh, i feel like my EE degree is only making a minimal difference

It's shocking isn't it! ATOT was telling you if you didn't get a college degree you would be stuck making minimum wage rest of your life. Now you find out that's not necessary true.

 

[BoomerD]

Union electricians in the SF Bay area are well into the $40/hour range, PLUS of course, their benefit package on top of that.

A union apprentice is by far the best way to earn a journeyman ticket in any trade. Not only do you get paid relatively well to learn the trade, (on-the job training) but you get great benefits too. Yes, most trades require a certain amount of schooling every year, and generally, you do NOT get paid for that time, but here in Kahleeforneeya, it's set up so the apprentices get unemployment for the time they're in training.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Originally posted by: Naustica

Originally posted by: Gibson486
I don't know...but 20/hr....man, that's pretty good with just a diploma and being kicked out of the army. You can make 50/hr? Do they work they work regular 40 hr weeks? Geesh, i feel like my EE degree is only making a minimal difference

It's shocking isn't it! ATOT was telling you if you didn't get a college degree you would be stuck making minimum wage rest of your life. Now you find out that's not necessary true.

Say that again? I think there's a few folks here that that don't get that.

 

[Iron Woode]

Originally posted by: Gibson486
I thought you had to go to school to be one (get a certificate or something...)......I guess not though. My gf's sister's husband just got a job as an electrician.....but all he has is a diploma. I am kind of impressed, actually. $20.hr with just a diploma while living in Kentucky.

that doesn't make him an electrician. That makes him a labourer.

to be an electrician here you must go to school first for the background, like I did. I got my Electrical Technologist diploma. Then you must find a company to hire you as an apprentice. That's a 5 year deal here. Each year you must go to school and pass a test to continue on. Not many companies want to hire someone for 5 years to train them. They would prefer cheap labourers instead. 1st year apprentice starts out at 50% journeyman's wage and goes up 10% every successful year after.

 

[rival]

when i was 18, just ouf of high school, there was an ad in the paper asking for people to sign for an electrical apprenticeship

i filled out the app, had an interview with their board members (this was for a union apprenticeship) took a test that basically was around high school level math and reading comprehension, got ranked about 16th? out of 100+, they take in a limted amount a year, i got in just barely, 5 years of school and 8k hours on the job later, i turned out as a journeyman, currently make $33/hour and am 26 with just a high school diploma (and the apprenticeship where you just pay for books)


long story short, goto your local union apprenticeship office and fill out an app

(incoming ATOT union bashers)

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: rival
when i was 18, just ouf of high school, there was an ad in the paper asking for people to sign for an electrical apprenticeship

i filled out the app, had an interview with their board members (this was for a union apprenticeship) took a test that basically was around high school level math and reading comprehension, got ranked about 16th? out of 100+, they take in a limted amount a year, i got in just barely, 5 years of school and 8k hours on the job later, i turned out as a journeyman, currently make $33/hour and am 26 with just a high school diploma (and the apprenticeship where you just pay for books)


long story short, goto your local union apprenticeship office and fill out an app

(incoming ATOT union bashers)

wow....you already make more than me. I am 24 and I have loans up the wazoo I wish I saw this when i graduated high school

 

[Fiat1]

Start here IEC you may have a location near you. Give them a call

 

[NoShangriLa]

Call the union office & local colleges would be a start.

There are a few questions that you may want to ask yourself before you head into the trades.

Do you enjoy working with others (often rude mannerism), physical work, dirty/loud environment, travel, willing to move, and type of work?

Give the local trade business that you are interested in a call, and ask them what are their day to day tasks in the field; to have a clearer picture of what to expect in that trade.

Top of the list for me would be, instrumentation/control mechanic, aviation mechanic, refrigeration/HVAC mechanic, elevator mechanic, power engineer/powerline tech, electrician, pipe/steam fitter, plumber, tool & die maker.

Your welcome.

 

[BoomerD]

If you want to become a journeyman electrician, here's the only way to do it right:
http://www.njatc.org/training/apprenticeship/index.aspx

Yes, there are other programs, and some colleges offer basic electrical courses, but none will provide the well-rounded quality training that a union apprenticeship program will.