Heard that electricians are highly sought after right now? Well, you heard correctly! There is a massive demand for electricians, and there needs to be more electricians to go around. This has pushed electrician salaries up. If you’re considering getting into the electrical business, it has never been a better time. However, the process won’t be easy. Before you can get properly paid for electrical work, you’ll need to become a journeyman electrician, which is a journey of 2-4 years.
So, what is a journeyman electrician? How do you become a journeyman electrician? What are you going to do once you’re qualified? We’ll explain it all right here!
What is a Journeyman Electrician?
In the electrical installation & repair world, there are three grades of electrician – apprentice, journeyman, and master. If you want to become a master electrician, for instance, you’ll need to go through the apprentice and journeyman stages first. To become a journeyman electrician, you must first become an apprentice. More on that shortly,
So, the journeyman is the second rung up the ladder. This is where the majority of electricians are. As a journeyman electrician, you’ll be qualified to work alone (mostly) as an electrician and tackle all sorts of electrical work. You won’t be able to do everything the people on the top of the pile can do, i.e., the master electricians, but you can do much of it.
What Does a Journeyman Electrician Do?
The exact jobs you’ll tackle as a journeyman electrician will vary greatly depending on where you work. However, most of the time, you’ll be:
- Installing electrical systems
- Repairing electrical systems
- Maintaining systems
- Installing wiring, power outlets, appliances, etc.
- Fitting lights and security systems
You’ll also be spending time keeping detailed notes of everything you do, quoting for client projects, and maybe assisting in an apprentice’s training.
If you eventually became a master electrician, you’d add blueprint creation, project planning, etc., to this list. However, you’ll need to work for thousands of hours as a journeyman electrician before you can even contemplate getting to the rank of master.
How Much Does an Electrical Journeyman Make?
The amount that a journeyman electrician earns will vary from state to state. Expect to earn an average of $65,000 per year. However, remember that earnings for electricians are climbing due to fewer and fewer people being willing to go through the training. Therefore, we wouldn’t be surprised if the average earnings for a journeyman electrician were substantially higher than this in a decade or so. Basically – it is a good industry to get into right now.
Skills and Traits Needed to Become a Journeyman Electrician
To become a journeyman electrician, you must complete an electrical apprenticeship first. The exact requirements to get on an apprenticeship will vary depending on who is offering the apprenticeship, but most of the ‘basic’ qualifications are minimal. This means:
- You must be 18 or older.
- You must have a high school diploma (normally with math and algebra as a requirement)
- You must pass an entry aptitude test.
Other than this, the skills & traits required are very much you-focused. They are motivational and practical. Let’s look at them.
Motivation
As with most jobs, a desire to become a journeyman electrician is necessary. As you’ll see shortly, becoming a journeyman electrician isn’t something you can decide on a whim. It will take thousands and thousands of hours of work before you can call yourself a journeyman electrician. This is a career you will have for the rest of your life, so if you have even the slightest inkling that being a journeyman electrician may not be the right career path for you, then you may not have what it takes to secure the job.
Organization
When it comes to electrical work, there are a lot of legal requirements in place, and most of these require you to be very organized. This means keeping detailed notes of everything that you do. It is about having the records you need at your fingertips whenever needed. If organization isn’t in your skillset, being a journeyman electrician may not be for you.
Strength & Endurance
You won’t be sitting down much as a journeyman electrician. You’ll be hauling heavy objects everywhere you go, moving around, walking up a lot of stairs, etc. You won’t make it through the day if you don’t have endurance.
Communication
Communication is essential for journeyman electricians. You must be able to convey information to other electricians accurately. It makes the work environment safer. If you are working with clients, you need to explain exactly what you will do, why you are doing it, etc.
Problem-Solving
Most people think being a journeyman electrician will involve constantly wiring up new systems, etc. It isn’t. That’s just going to be a fraction of your work. Most of the time, you’re going to be fixing things. This is where your problem-solving skills come into play. You’ll learn how to solve certain problems during your training, but having an innate talent for solving problems in other aspects of your life would be good.
Attention to Detail
Electrical work done incorrectly could be deadly. As a journeyman electrician, you’re going to need to follow a lot of elaborate plans. You must follow them perfectly. You must check the work that you do repeatedly. Don’t become an electrician if you are not known for your attention to detail. It could put your life and the lives of others on the line.
Explore other careers that require similar traits:
How to Become a Journeyman Electrician
You can’t wake up one day and say, “I want to be a journeyman electrician.” Well, you can. It just won’t get you anywhere. Becoming a journeyman electrician is quite long, and you’ll have to progress through the apprenticeship stage before that.
To become a journeyman electrician, you must undergo an electrician’s apprenticeship. You can either attend a trade school for this or find a company that offers apprenticeships. During your apprenticeship, you’ll be learning (almost) everything there is to know about being an electrician. This process won’t be quick. We’re talking a good 4,000 to 8,000 hours of on-the-job training. That’s around 2 to 4 years of training for most people (the time will depend on how you are being trained).
Once you finish your apprenticeship training, what happens can vary from country to country and state to state. Most of the time, you’ll need to take a test. You’ll probably need to take a few different tests. Should you pass, you’ll be licensed. Once you’re licensed, you are free to practice as a journeyman electrician. You may need regular training courses and more tests to maintain your license. Although, once again, this will depend on the state.
When you’re working as a journeyman electrician, as we’re sure you’ll want to start doing right away, you can begin working toward becoming a master electrician (the final tier of being an electrician). This will take another 8,000 hours of work and more tests. But that’s a journey for you to take in the future! For now, just focus on being the best journeyman electrician you can be.
