HVAC Schools Near Me in North Salt Lake UT 84054

How to Enroll In an HVAC School near North Salt Lake Utah

North Salt Lake UT HVAC tech servicing AC compressor Once you have come to a decision on a career as a heating and air conditioning technician, the next action is to find an HVAC trade school near North Salt Lake UT. But with so many to select from, how do you decide on the ideal one to get the training that you require? Some prospective students will make their decision based entirely on the price of tuition or how near the school is to their home. While these are important considerations, they are not the only ones to evaluate. A few of the other factors that you need to research are the graduation rates of the HVAC schools, their reputations, and if they are accredited by professional trade organizations. These and other criteria will be covered in more detail later within this article. But before we tackle how to choose an HVAC vocational school, let’s take a look at what a heating and a/c technician does to become a licensed skilled tradesman.

How to Become an HVAC Tech in North Salt Lake UT

North Salt Lake UT HVAC tech servicing industrial furnaces HVAC is an acronym that is widely used in the business that stands for “Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning”. HVAC technicians specialize in the installation, maintenance and repair of central air conditioners, furnaces, boilers, hot water heaters and heating systems. As skilled tradesmen, they are commonly required to be licensed, although every state and local municipality has its own requirements. Attaining professional certification is not compulsory, but an alternative way for North Salt Lake UT HVAC technicians to demonstrate that they are highly qualified and accomplished in their area of expertise. There are multiple recognized certifications within the field that are offered. Below are a few of the significant ones.

North American Technician Excellence (NATE). NATE is a nationally acknowledged certification for HVAC techs. The certification is attained by passing a proficiency exam and can be received in one or more specialties.
HVAC Excellence. This certification offers both a professional and a master specialist credential. Two years of field experience as well as passing a comprehensive exam are needed for the professional level certification. Master specialists need to have 3 years of experience together with a passing score on the professional level examination. As with NATE, certifications are made available in several specialties.
EPA Section 608. This certification is mandatory for technicians that work with refrigerants. There are three types of certification offered, one for small appliances, and the additional two for low and high pressure refrigerants.

Since licensing could be required in your area, and you may also intend to obtain certification, it’s important that you enroll in an HVAC technical school that will prepare you for both. And since you will more than likely be dealing with refrigerants, make certain that the program you pick readies you for passing the EPA Section 608 examinations.

HVAC Degree Classes

North Salt Lake UT HVAC contractor installing residential water heater There are several options available for HVAC instruction in a technical or trade school. You can earn a certificate, an Associate Degree, or a Bachelor’s Degree. Acquiring a certificate will take the lesser amount of time, usually accomplished in as little as six months, although some courses are longer. A certificate will qualify you for the majority of HVAC positions, especially if you are licensed and have certification appropriate to the position. The degree programs might provide a competitive edge for securing employment and will furnish more comprehensive training than the certificate programs. Following is a short explanation of each credential offered near North Salt Lake UT.

Certificate. Generally requiring a high school diploma, certificate programs are preferred among entry level residential or commercial HVAC specialists. They provide a solid foundation of skills for employment within the industry.
Associate Degree. The Associate Degree in HVAC program provides a more comprehensive background of heating and cooling systems than the certificate program. Typically requiring 2 years to finish, some degrees include an internship or work-study program.
Bachelor’s Degree. The Bachelor’s Degree in HVAC is tailored more for a career in management as well as business ownership. Some programs require an Associate Degree, while others are a traditional 4 year program. In addition to being taught how to service and maintain heating and air conditioning systems, you will also learn how to design them.

Selecting the appropriate credential program will be based on what your long term career goals are, together with the time and financial resources that you have to invest. One possibility is to begin with a certificate or even an Associate Degree program, and after acquiring some experience in the field in North Salt Lake UT, later going back to obtain a Bachelor’s Degree. If this is your strategy, make sure to ask the HVAC tech school you are considering about how their returning student program works.

HVAC Online Training

attending HVAC Training School Online in North Salt Lake UT Choosing an HVAC school online is one possibility in getting your education and earning a degree or certificate. Nearly all schools will call for some attendance on campus to participate in hands on training. Some also offer internship or work-study programs in addition to or in place of practical lab work. But since the rest of the classes may be participated in online, this approach may be a more accessible solution for some North Salt Lake UT students that are pressed for time. And some online degree programs are less costly than other traditional choices. Even driving expenses from North Salt Lake and study supplies can be reduced, helping to make schooling more economical. And many online schools are fully accredited (more on this later). So if your career or family responsibilities have left you with minimal time to attend classes, perhaps an online HVAC degree program will make it less complicated to fit school into your hectic lifestyle.

What to Ask HVAC Training Programs near North Salt Lake UT

After you have chosen the type of certificate or degree that you would like to attain, either online or on campus, you can start to decrease your selection of schools. As you are probably aware, there are numerous HVAC trade schools in the North Salt Lake UT area and across the Country to select from. That’s why it is extremely important to have a checklist of important qualifiers when making school comparisons. As previously mentioned in our opening paragraph, location and tuition will undoubtedly be the first 2 factors you will look at. Following are several additional ones that you need to explore before enrolling in your school of choice.

Accreditation. Many HVAC technical programs in the North Salt Lake UT area have attained either a regional or a national accreditation. They can attain Institutional Accreditation, which involves the school’s programs as a whole, or Programmatic Accreditation, which pertains to an individual program, for instance HVAC technology. Make certain that the program is accredited by a U.S. Department of Education approved accrediting agency, for instance the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. In addition to helping guarantee that you get a quality education, it may help in securing financial assistance or student loans, which are frequently not available for non-accredited programs. Furthermore, a number of states mandate that the HVAC training course be accredited for it to be approved for licensing.

High Completion Rates. Ask the Heating and Air Conditioning schools you are reviewing what their completion rates are. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students who enroll in and finish the program. A low completion rate might suggest that students were dissatisfied with the course and dropped out. It may also indicate that the instructors were not qualified to train the students. It’s also imperative that the schools have higher job placement rates. Older and/or more reputable schools may have a more extensive directory of graduates, which may produce more contacts for the school to use for their apprenticeship and job placement programs. A high job placement rate can not only confirm that the school has a good reputation within the trade, but additionally that it has the network of North Salt Lake UT HVAC employers to assist grads acquire apprenticeships or employment.

Apprenticeship Programs. Many HVAC training programs are taught together with an apprenticeship or an internship program. Those participating vocational and technical schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program within their network of Heating and Cooling contractors or trade unions. Check if the schools you are reviewing have working relationships with local North Salt Lake UT HVAC contractors. An apprenticeship not only provides a rewarding experience by furnishing practical training, but it also provides employment opportunities and helps to form relationships in the local HVAC professional community.

Modern Facilities. Make sure that the campus facilities and the equipment that you will be trained on are state-of-the-art and what you will be using on the job. If you are already in an internship or an apprenticeship, talk to the HVAC technician you are working with regarding what you should be looking for. If not, ask a local North Salt Lake UT HVAC company if they can give you some suggestions. Also bear in mind that unless you are willing to move, the school must be within commuting distance of your North Salt Lake UT home. Remember that if you decide to attend an out-of-state school, in addition to moving costs there can be higher tuition fees compared to in-state residents.

Smaller Classes. It’s important that you get as much individualized training as possible, which can be challenging in bigger classes. Ask if you can monitor some of the classes so that you can see how big they are and experience the interaction between students and instructors. Talk with some of the students and get their comments concerning class sizes and instruction. Finally, speak with some of the teachers and find out what their level of experience is and what certifications or degrees they have earned.

Flexible Scheduling. Verify that the class schedules for the programs you are assessing are flexible enough to meet your needs. If you can only go to classes in the evening or on weekends near North Salt Lake UT, confirm that the programs you are comparing provide those options. If you can only attend part-time, make sure that the school you select permits part-time enrollment. Finally, find out what the protocol is to make-up classes should you miss any due to work, sickness or family emergencies.

Attending HVAC School near North Salt Lake UT?

North Salt Lake, Utah

North Salt Lake is a city in Davis County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Ogden–Clearfield, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 16,322 at the 2010 census,[3] which had risen to an estimated 19,193 as of 2014.[4]

North Salt Lake is located in southern Davis County; it is bordered to the north by Woods Cross, to the northeast by Bountiful, and to the south by Salt Lake City in Salt Lake County. According to the United States Census Bureau, North Salt Lake has a total area of 8.6 square miles (22.2 km2), of which 0.1 square miles (0.2 km2), or 0.80%, is water.[3]

According to estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau,[7] as of 2016, there were 20,301 people in North Salt Lake. The racial makeup of the county was 75.4% non-Hispanic White, 0.3% Black, 0.8% Native American, 3.1% Asian, and 5.0% from two or more races. 13.5% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

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Select the Right HVAC Training Classes near North Salt Lake UT

Selecting the right HVAC training course is an important beginning toward a fulfilling career in the heating & cooling field. As we have covered in this post, you need to choose a vocational school and a degree or certificate program that are both accredited and have excellent reputations within the HVAC trade. Other things to look for are plenty of hands-on training and state-of-the-art facilities. You need to visit each of the schools personally that you are most interested in to explore the campus and speak with both the faculty and current students. Attempt to get a feel for the quality of the instruction and the interaction between them. In addition, ask about scheduling options and whether night or weekend classes are available if needed. And remember to ask about financial assistance and student loan options also. If you ask the right questions as we have laid out in our checklist for comparing schools, you’ll be able to filter your choices so that you can make an informed decision. With the proper training, hard work and dedication, you can eventually become a licensed HVAC specialist in North Salt Lake UT.