Thread: electrician as a career path?

so here is my story. I'm 20, from Minnesota, and attending the university of Wisconsin. I'm a sophomore, with a 3.5 gpa but I can't seem to find a major that appeals to me. When home from school I like to have little projects going (restoring a razor, making a desk, tinkering with electronics, etc.) When talking about my lack of direction, one of my parents suggested that maybe I'd like to do some kind of work with my hands, specifically becoming an electrician. I've done some research on the internet and it seems like interesting work, people seem to say they make alot of money and you aren't stuck at a desk.

SRP, you usually have good insight on most topics, are any of you electricians, or friends of electricians, or related to the profession in some way in that you might have information that would be beneficial to someone in my shoes?
Obviously, its something I'm going to have to decide on my own and I'm not exactly planning to drop out of school and run down to the local union for an apprenticeship but it seems like a possible direction.

I'm very appreciative of any knowledge you'd like to share.
Thanks

First of all, a good electrician will always have work.

Me, I studied electronics when I was in highschool, after that I worked in publicity for 10 years, and know I'm a police officer.

But I have never regreted studying electronics, it always comes in handy.
That's my opinion...

For what it's worth, in this current economic climate, a trade doesn't seem like a bad career at all. You can always count on having a job as long as there's electricity.

Why not call the union and explore your options. Talk to your/your parents electrician and ask him to be completely honest with you about what to expect. Ask if he'd do it again if he had the chance.

I sometimes regret spending so much time/money in college, when I ended up (four careers and 12 years later) doing something completely different and much more satisfying. Though I realize I wouldn't be where I am if I took a different route, so...

Just remember that school will always be there if you want it. You aren't stuck either way. Take your time and enjoy the process.

-t

ps: chief, I was just listening to the first recording of Douce Ambiance as i saw your avatar pop up.

Hope you don't mind my chiming in when I don't actually have experience in the field. (Though I did know and admire an electrician who was a friend of my parents when I was a kid. I liked the man a lot--still do, in memory; and thought his shop was fascinating.) But your thread caught my eye because that trade has always interested me. I think I'd have gone after an apprenticeship if I had not gone to college, and I've suggested it once or twice to my son, who was in college for a while but says he's not that interested in going back. Being an electrician seems to me to be one of the most intellectually challenging and stimulating of the skilled trades, for one thing: you're always solving problems of one kind or another, and you have to master some pretty sophisticated concepts to really understand the work at the highest level. And hey, you get to spend your career playing with a powerful invisible force! What could be cooler than that?

It also seems to me that being an electrician would be more recession-proof than some lines of work. General construction, even carpentry, you're more at the mercy of the economic cycle: when the economy goes south, new construction slows down or stops. Not that anyone is immune, but after all, people are always going to need electrical work done.

You know, one thing that occurs to me is maybe it doesn't have to be an either-or choice here. I don't know how apprenticeships work, is it something you can pursue during the summers, or does it have to be all at one go? If the former--or if you could at least get a start this summer--then you might do some coursework in electrical engineering during the school year (maybe business management too, if you think you might want to go into business for yourself); and you might be in a strong position to get a part-time campus job related to the field. Again, I'm not speaking from personal experience and I can't say if it would actually work, but it strikes me that a college degree and an electrician's certification could be a pretty good combination.

Good luck, whatever you decide to do!

~Rich

if you enjoy fiddling with electricity, why not go all the way and get your double-E at college and make a hell of a lot more money? my workplace is full of EE guys and gals who work with their hands all day and get paid exceptionally well to do so?

Follow Jockeys advice on this topic. I know a handful of electricians. Yes, they do keep busy. Stringing wire in old buildings, crawlspaces and attics when it's 90 degrees outside and 120 degrees where they're crawling amidst the fiberglass insulation, cobwebs and filth isn't one of the favorite parts of their job they tell me. It is good honest and necessary work though.

Chris L

Do you like music? If so, become a rock star instead! You could spend the next seven years bringing groupies, alcohol and drugs back to your various hotel rooms! And then one morning the groupies will wake to find your bloated corpse and run to reception screaming. Don't despair, though, because your music and your legacy will live forever!

Actually, yeah, become an electrician.

If not for any other reason become an electrician because you'll always have tape handy for the spines.

Originally Posted by jockeys

if you enjoy fiddling with electricity, why not go all the way and get your double-E at college and make a hell of a lot more money? my workplace is full of EE guys and gals who work with their hands all day and get paid exceptionally well to do so?

+1. It's tough, but if you can do it, why not? With much respect to the people saying school will always be there, you're at a unique time where you actually can go to school. I know a lot of people in your same boat that decided to go after a trade. It worked out for a few years, but there's a ceiling to career growth without a degree. We tend to accumulate stuff (wife, kids, bills, toys) that keep us from pursuing things like school. Even if you don't go with Electrical Engineering, the piece of paper you get at the end is worth it. No one even said your chosen career(s) has/have to be in the same vein as your major either.

Something I've always suggested is to get a class catalog and start looking for actual classes that you're interested in (kayaking doesn't count), at least as electives. You might find that there's a degree there you just didn't fully consider. If at the end of it all you've graduated and still want to be an electrician, you've at least got the degree to fall back on later in life.

For what it's worth, my dad went into a "recession proof" trade because he couldn't go to college. It's true his job is recession proof and he made decent money as a young guy, but it took him and others in his profession over 10 years to reach $40k/year (and he's extremely good at what he does). Most college graduates will reach $40k/year in the first year or two of graduation. Depending on the industry, engineers can easily double that at graduation.

Being an Electrician is a very good job, right now I teach electricity and a trades College and it is very rewarding work always working with your hands , and trying to figure out the next problem. It is tough to start but with a little perseverance you will get through it if you choose to go this direction. As an electrician I would say go for it.