Self Studying?

[sgeers]

Hello everyone. I am new here, but ive been searching and sort of lurking a while. anyway, i just graduated my apprenticeship, but about 6 months ago i decided to take the step to try to gain my Master Electrician Cert.

i have been self studying for about 6 weeks, approx. 12 -16 hours a week, using stallcup's, and a generic electricians exam guide and some sheets a fellow coworker shared with me.

Im just curious, as to whether or not i should have pursued the prep class, or if alot of folks have passed studying on their own.

my test is oct. 6th by the way

 

[infinity]

Are you taking the NJ Electrical Contractors test? You'll need to know some stuff about fire alarm and business law too. It is possible to do it on your own but a prep class can steer you in the right direction. so you don't waste a lot of time studying things that you don't need to know. IMO a prep class is worth the time and money for that reason. As far as I know NJ does not have a Master Electrician's License.

Welcome to the forum.

 

[celtic]

Hello everyone. I am new here, ...

Welcome aboard!

... to gain my Master Electrician Cert.

One thing that is very important:

Terminology
​

NJ has no "Master" for electricians.
Classifications include:
Apprentice
Journeyman
Licensed EC

Now it may seem like I am splitting hairs (or even attacking you personally) but that is NOT the case.
Grounded, grounding, ungrounded; branch circuit, feeder; etc...very important to know the differences.
Stick with the proper terminology and you'll never go astray.

i have been self studying for about 6 weeks, approx. 12 -16 hours a week, using stallcup's, and a generic electricians exam guide and some sheets a fellow coworker shared with me.

Stallcup has very good products.
"Lurking" here is also a very good idea.
Self studying is also an excellent route.
However, what happens when your answer doesn't match the books answer?
Self studying and lurking is only 1/2 the equation ~ the other 1/2 is participating ( and Mike Holt's forum here is probably the best place to participate!)
When you get jammed up or have mental block ASK HERE.
You can learn an awful lot here by simply reading the Q & A's presented...even more when you ask a Q or two.

Im just curious, as to whether or not i should have pursued the prep class, or if alot of folks have passed studying on their own.

my test is oct. 6th by the way

I am not going to comment on what you *should* have done....we will find that out after Oct. 6 (if you post how you think you did).
Keep studying and participate some more here.
I think you'll do just fine if you follow that simple plan.

 

[sgeers]

i really appreciate all the feedback guys. to answer a few q's,

I am currently a JW in the IBEW

I would have liked to take a class, but time was not on my side unfortunatly. I had a hard time tracking down all of the 15+ contractors i have worked for in order to get the work experience forms completed. I figured that if anything the board of electrical examiners would have said I needed to prove a few more months of time before accepting me, and these classes are 11 or 12 weeks, booked up months in advance.

As far as the Business and Fire Alarm go, I have the appropriate references in hand at the moment. A very close friend of mine just passed his Electrical Contractors Exam without taking a class, so he has been helping me out here and there with things i may get stuck on.

All in all, I feel like I am in fairly decent shape at the moment for the test, but as I get closer I am sure I will be asking alot of questions on this board. Thanks again,

 

[brian john]

I think this is a personal issue, for me I found the classes a big benefit.

 

[celtic]

I had a hard time tracking down all of the 15+ contractors i have worked for in order to get the work experience forms completed. I figured that if anything the board of electrical examiners would have said I needed to prove a few more months of time before accepting me, and these classes are 11 or 12 weeks, booked up months in advance.

It is not really a requirement to have a letter from each contractor (or any for that matter).

Imagine if some of these contractors had gone belly up - and there was no one to sign off?
Imagine if you had separated from some contractors on less than happy terms and they refused to sign off?
Would that mean your work experience didn't exist?

I found this out when an EC I worked for parted less than amicably. He basically refused to sign off on me by simply ignoring the form. I supplied the BOEOEC with copies of every pay stub from this EC ~ no problem.
Alternately, the director/president of your JATC could have written a letter and had it notarized as sufficient proof of your work experience.


I'm not bashing you - just a little twist on what the rules say versus what can actually be.

If you have questions - ASK.
Asking a question before you get jammed up can lead to a stress free day

 

[sgeers]

celtic, thank you very much for that piece of info. i was under the assumption i needed everyone to sign off, but in the end i had to send in copies of my w2's of the contractors that were belly up or unreachable. it was quite a few

 

[celtic]

celtic, thank you very much for that piece of info.

You're very welcome.

i was under the assumption i needed everyone to sign off, but in the end i had to send in copies of my w2's of the contractors that were belly up or unreachable. it was quite a few

I hope you didn't waste too much time trying to get all those signatures!
I couldn't believe that my former employer was acting childish many years later and holding a grudge over a minute incident.
I called the Board and they told me just send in the stubs/W-2's. :smile:

The JATC director/pres. would have written the letter for you - no problem....unless of course, you didn't want everyone to know your business

 

[dbnj49]

NJ License exam

NJ License exam

If you contact the Nj dept. of consumer affairs they will send you an application and recommended study aids. Thay also give you the break down of what would be on the exam ( like 20% motors, 20% grounding, things like that). I would not study from the Stallcups book. It will confuse you more than help you. It has numerous calculation errors and goes way to in depth on things you do not need to know for the exam. Take a prep course to learn how to take the exam. I took Ben Shedlock in Clark, NJ. Passed my first time I took it. Got a 92 on the code part, 94 on business law and 82 on the alarm systems. Mike Holt's book called "Electrical NEC Exam Preperations" is a must. Good Luck!

 

[SiddMartin]

I used Mike holts online Masters exam to prep, that along w/ the freebie quizzes, and this forum, I was able to pass the Masters. The more time you are in the book, the quicker you will get. Classes or not.

edit to add: This forum has a great number of knowledgable people willing to help and it works out well

 

[nyerinfl]

I used Mike holts online Masters exam to prep, that along w/ the freebie quizzes, and this forum, I was able to pass the Masters. The more time you are in the book, the quicker you will get. Classes or not.

edit to add: This forum has a great number of knowledgable people willing to help and it works out well

I too used Mike Holt extensively to prepare for my test. Using all the methods you mentioned, along with this package, http://mikeholt.com/productitem.php?id=389&year=2005&from=All&type=Library. Well worth the money, I would never have passed my test without Mike's material and my addiction to this forum. I also took Mike's prep class the week before the test. Like dbnj49 said the best benifit to this class I believe was learning how to take a test. Without the class I was prepared, but definetly wouldn't have taken the test right. Proper self study with the right material will go a long way, but don't discredit getting taught how to actually take the test, very important.
However, I am also not familiar with the material on the NJ test, but pay the money and get the right material, you won't regret it come test day.

 

[cadpoint]

It is not really a requirement to have a letter from each contractor (or any for that matter).

It does get one to qualify by their hours for the test in my neck of the woods!
My State has a Form to be filled out by each employer if the employe submits that, it gets a notirized stamp of hours to qualify for our state test!

And one can quailify for our State Test with tax statements!

 

[sgeers]

i also wanted to add that i purchased mike holts exam guide today and will be going through that prior to my test as well. i did notice alot of unnecessary steps and calculation errors in the stallcup book to whomever brought that up.

 

[sgeers]

just a little update, i recieved my mike holt guide about a week ago and have steadily been working my way through it. it is much better than the stallcup book in my opinion. the test is in a bout 2 weeks or so. i recieved my admission letters last week.

 

[grantcool]

tom henry has alot of good material too. i'm using both him and mike holt and going for my masters in october. i've been self studying for about 4 months.

 

[guschash]

I used Mike Holt online examines and Stallup books and studied alot.

 

[electricalperson]

i read then reread the code book cover to cover and thats how i studied for my journeyman license and passed the first time. im using mike holt books to learn from in class and will use them to study for my masters

 

[sgeers]

just a small update, my test is approx. 1 week away and i have been working hard studying. i guess we'll see how it will go

 

[sgeers]

My test is now only a day or so away. I finished mike's exam prep guide today. the lowest score i got was an 88. im feeling pretty confident now and looking forward to the test on monday. tomorrow i plan on briefly getting acquainted with the fire alarm and business law books.

 

[celtic]

Good luck sqeers.

Is the only test site still in Springfield, NJ on Rt. 22?

15+/- years ago when I sat for the test, the Hotel had a restaurant with food that wasn't too bad ....later (after the test) the Hotel's bar was a "full rail".

So bring some cash