Few jobs let you earn a decent wage while you go to school with a clear path to higher-paying work.
Two local journeyman-electrician programs offer that opportunity to power up your career.
Pima Community College has two journeyman programs — one through the Arizona Builders' Alliance and another through Tucson Electric Power Co. — that can be completed around your work schedule and can increase your hourly wage.
Journeyman status certifies you as an electrician, allowing you to earn an average of about $18 an hour depending on the employer, said Debbie Carlson, Southern Arizona office administrator at the Arizona Builders' Alliance.
The alliance, a commercial-construction trade association, helps students get into the journeyman program through its member companies.
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"The journeyman program is wide-open for anyone who wants to better their life and get trained," Carlson said.
Doug Price an apprentice at alliance member Sovereign Electric, started there five days after he graduated from Catalina High School in May 2007 and was given the option to get certified in the journeyman program.
He is now taking the night classes and will finish the journeyman program in two years because he was able to take the summer program.
"This is a good program for someone looking for a career, because you get to see the odds and ends of the job, and it gives you an idea of whether it's right for you or not," Price said.
To qualify for the Builder's Alliance, applicants must be at least 18 by the second year in the program and have a high school diploma or General Educational Development certificate, also known as General Equivalency Diploma or GED.
If you need funding assistance to get into the program, the Arizona Builders' Alliance will give you a one-semester scholarship and try to get you a job the field, Carlson said.
The classes are 2 1/2 hours in the evenings, twice a week. They are held at PCC's Downtown Campus.
Usual pay for an entry-level electric utility worker is around $8 an hour, Carlson said.
Eventually, you must get registered through the state to become an apprentice. As an apprentice you can earn more than you would as an entry-level employee.
It takes about four years before the program is complete and you get your journeyman license. But if you are taking summer classes or working overtime, you can finish early, Carlson said.
TEP's "Building for Success" is a one-year program at PCC to help students get their journeyman licenses. The utility will be awarding eight scholarships for August 2008 enrollment.
The program is good for someone who is craft-oriented, hands-on or a technical thinker, said Joshua Schwartz, TEP training coordinator.
Tucson Electric Power looks for applicants with strong math and science skills and a positive attitude, Schwartz said. They need to be able to sell themselves on strong academics and their extracurricular activities, he added.
A haphazard approach won't work — an incomplete application will not be considered, and students should dress professionally for an interview, he said.
TEP offers tuition reimbursement for students who want to further their education in the field after they are hired as full-time employees and are with the company for one year, Schwartz said.
"The industry is growing as a whole and is very steady," Schwartz said. "Last year we received 20 applications, and we are hoping for more this year because there are a lot more apprenticeships offered this year."
First in a series
• Today: Earn and learn with electrician journeyman programs.
• Friday: City job fairs are first step in landing summer parks work.