Apprenticeship?

[jeremysterling]

Informal... Four years USNavy Electrician's Mate. Got all the theory, breaker school, battery school, generator and distribution controls schools, etc.

Four years in the Navy and thought I knew everything. Separated from the Navy (which is an acronym for Never Again Volunteer Yourself) and applied at an EC in my hometown. At the interview, VJ asked me, "Do you have a pair of Kleins?"

My reply, "What are Kleins?"

VJ says, "Great, I'll start you at $8 an hour."

While working for VJ, I would get IEC bulletins in the mail. The classes they offered sounded interesting, but the Navy had taught me everything, right?

I broke out 10 years later. I worked commercial construction for VJ for one year. I worked a factory assembly job for three years, fab shop maintenance for three, and overhead crane service for three. The City of Houston Electrical Board (kindly) accepted my application to test out for unrestricted journeyman and I passed (I had taken two Code classes at the Community college).

I took the ICC Texas Master exam three days ago. I am still waiting for the results...

 

[RJohnsonMasterElectrician]

4 years of VT State Apprenticeship program 2 nights a week 3+ hrs each night. Must also have had 8000hr of OJT documented and approved by the State apprenticeship council. This was just to take your Journeymans. I had to do another 4000hr OJT over seen and documented by a master electrician and if I remember correctly it had to be notorized and then sent to the State Apprenticeship council for approval. Once approved I was able to apply for my master exam.

 

[nunu161]

3 years high school vo-tech, 1 year community, and just finished my 3rd out of 5 years of classroom time with the NJATC, and ojt will come out to be about 12000 hours, plus all the safety training

 

[Minuteman]

Training?!? I didn't need no stinkin' training!

Hook the black to the black, white to the white, and cut the other one off - nothin' to this lektrical stuff...



:grin:

I had a combination of formal and informal trainng. I'm still informally learning that I need more formal training.

 

[Prene13]

Informal... Four years USNavy Electrician's Mate. Got all the theory, breaker school, battery school, generator and distribution controls schools, etc.

Four years in the Navy and thought I knew everything. Separated from the Navy (which is an acronym for Never Again Volunteer Yourself) and applied at an EC in my hometown. At the interview, VJ asked me, "Do you have a pair of Kleins?"

My reply, "What are Kleins?"

VJ says, "Great, I'll start you at $8 an hour."

While working for VJ, I would get IEC bulletins in the mail. The classes they offered sounded interesting, but the Navy had taught me everything, right?

I broke out 10 years later. I worked commercial construction for VJ for one year. I worked a factory assembly job for three years, fab shop maintenance for three, and overhead crane service for three. The City of Houston Electrical Board (kindly) accepted my application to test out for unrestricted journeyman and I passed (I had taken two Code classes at the Community college).

I took the ICC Texas Master exam three days ago. I am still waiting for the results...

That is why Texas does not reciprocate with most states.

 

[Buck Parrish]

The south east did not have a lot of formal apprenticeship programs.
Thus, I think most guys ended up working more hours before taking the test to get a license.
How ever ...
On the big commercial jobs I was on. A licensed man was thought of as a book worm. And not a guy whom had paid his dues in the field.

Now I know their are variations. But we would have some license guys start with us. And know very little about installing electrical work.

 

[kbrandt]

5 year apprenticeship 8000 on the job training and 800 class room hours. 2 nights a week for 3 hours took 5 years.

1st year trained on a shovel, pick and digging bar (Arizona-all rock and hard ground) got a masters degree in all 3.

 

[jeremysterling]

That is why Texas does not reciprocate with most states.

Why, because Texas did not require me to kick a shovel for four years?

 

[viking207]

formal, 4 year voc/high school, only needed 4000 more hours to set for the journeymans test, and had 3x the classroom hours needed. It only took me 15 more years to realize how little I remember from all that school'n and begin to learn it again!

 

[fmtjfw]

Informal

Informal

I 'preticed to my dad an engineer for the power company. As a teenager I wandered around substations, power plants ... with him. Rewired 2400V metering for 100KW generators. I got involved in a failed effort to build a cyclotron: wired distribution transformers, designed electrical and control systems, hung wiremold and did wiring. Worked part of a summer as a member of maintenance crew at a power station.

1965 discovered computers. Taught myself to program the IBM 7040 in assembly language, FORTRAN.

1969-72 US Army Signal Corps. Training in telephone dial central office repair and computer controlled central offices. Performed acceptance testing for truck mounted computer controlled 600 line 4-wire touchtone field phone system in Europe.

1975 Computer Science BS cum laude (da) WVU

1979-2004 employed in industry as systems software engineer, operating systems architect.

2005 burned out from doing software for 40 years.

2005-06 1080 hour electric technology courses at local HS tech center.

2006 passed WV Journeyman's test

2006 summer construction as woefully underpaid Journeyman

2006-present maintenance electrician and electronic technician for county school system.

Designed 208/120V 800A upgrade (replacement) for 240/120V 600A service for a school system. With one other Journeyman installed same.

2010 probably go for Master's test


/s/ Jim WIlliams

alright start blasting away 8^))

 

[Pierre C Belarge]

I 'preticed to my dad an engineer for the power company. As a teenager I wandered around substations, power plants ... with him. Rewired 2400V metering for 100KW generators. I got involved in a failed effort to build a cyclotron: wired distribution transformers, designed electrical and control systems, hung wiremold and did wiring. Worked part of a summer as a member of maintenance crew at a power station.

1965 discovered computers. Taught myself to program the IBM 7040 in assembly language, FORTRAN.

1969-72 US Army Signal Corps. Training in telephone dial central office repair and computer controlled central offices. Performed acceptance testing for truck mounted computer controlled 600 line 4-wire touchtone field phone system in Europe.

1975 Computer Science BS cum laude (da) WVU

1979-2004 employed in industry as systems software engineer, operating systems architect.

2005 burned out from doing software for 40 years.

2005-06 1080 hour electric technology courses at local HS tech center.

2006 passed WV Journeyman's test

2006 summer construction as woefully underpaid Journeyman

2006-present maintenance electrician and electronic technician for county school system.

Designed 208/120V 800A upgrade (replacement) for 240/120V 600A service for a school system. With one other Journeyman installed same.

2010 probably go for Master's test


/s/ Jim WIlliams

alright start blasting away 8^))

Seems like in your mid 50s you are going to try and be a contractor....good for you and good luck!!!

 

[rlc3854]

Seems like in your mid 50s you are going to try and be a contractor....good for you and good luck!!!

Mid 50's try more like late 50's may early 60's.

 

[fmtjfw]

62

62

Re: Master's

I'd sort of like to recognized for the design work I do.

I'll probably be a part of a small team from WVIAEI this summer that will be preparing a several day course on electrical inspecting for the state fire marshal and his deputies.

If I do anything with the Master's it would probably be to go into inspections.

Thanks,

/s/ Jim WIlliams

 

[bobsherwood]

In 1975, I tried to get into the Dallas Joint Appenticeship. At that time, if you didn't "know" someone in the union, not much chance. So, I went it alone. I would have loved an appenticeship though.

 

[jrannis]

The south east did not have a lot of formal apprenticeship programs.
Thus, I think most guys ended up working more hours before taking the test to get a license.
How ever ...
On the big commercial jobs I was on. A licensed man was thought of as a book worm. And not a guy whom had paid his dues in the field.

Now I know their are variations. But we would have some license guys start with us. And know very little about installing electrical work.

I dont think anybody is more Southeast then I am.
That has to be the most backward thing I have ever read.
Seems to me that licensed people were respected and the guys that didn't bother to pass the exam were considered slugs, under achievers and could not get past the rank of helper.

 

[ichimo23]

Started out as a helper -part time- 6 years ago here in Phoenix (have a full time job in another industry where i work 40hrs in 3 days Fri/Sat/Sun). Ended up enjoying the work more than my full time vocation, and started learning the trade -no formal apprenticeship. Have taken a number a classes at local community college (on my own dime). After gaining some knowledge and understanding of safety and codes through the classes, realized that my on the job 'training' was often an exercise in how NOT to do things. Sad to say, workmanship and safety were often not THE priority. Currently weighing options on how to best further my career. Enter a formal apprenticeship program and start from scratch, or try to get hired somewhere else as a second or third year apprentice? I started my other career early, and can retire with benefits In about 5 years, so I plan on working both jobs until then; and becomming a full time electrician after that. I would appreciate input/suggestions from forum members, especially in the Phoenix area.

 

[westernexplorer]

I completed a 2 year program of formal vocational schooling as an electrical apprentice with OJT at Atlantic Vo-Tech in Coconut Creek, Florida. Several years later joined the IBEW as a Journeyman Electrician and took over 600 hours of electrical classes over an 8 year period. Also, read alot on my own and had the opportunity to work on some of the largest jobs in the United States, including a Nuclear Power Plant. Became an Electrical Inspector in 2004. Still learning, I don't think your apprenticeship ever ends....LOL

 

[dexcoop]

apprenticeship

apprenticeship

I never completed an official apprenticeship program. I did however complete 2 years of residential and commercial trade school / BOCES program my last two years of high school. Then I jumper strait into the trade some 15 years ago.

 

[e57]

For those who missed the deleted thread that initiated this: I had mentioned that there were a number of guys out there who had few if any ties to the "Traditional" Apprenticeship Providers (Merit/JATC). What I called the "Other 50%" who had no ties, or loyalties to whichever labor organization that trained them. As there are many with no contact to either A or B. My state elliminated informal apprenticeship a short and unenforced while ago - and now the only way into the trade is through a formal apprenticeship from either camp. No longer can you go work for Dad, or Uncle Bob, or just get a job.... Which is how many of the people working in California have gotten into the trade.

 

[Red Wiggler]

Formal

Formal

4 years - 8000 hours of on the job training, and 800 hours of classroom training.
Continuing the formal training with 24 hours a year in Code updates, or other classes that I feel will be valuable training.