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McAllen is a moderately sized city located at the southern tip of Texas near the Gulf of Mexico and the Mexican/US border.
The city was first settled in 1904 and is now home to a population that exceeds 104,000 residents (2020).
The climate is subtropical and offers an outdoor lifestyle year-round, so many golf, biking, or ocean lovers call McAllen home.
McAllen is known as an ideal Flyway – it sits directly beneath the migratory path of birds traveling from North to South America, although the area is known for diverse wildlife.
If you are interested in working as an electrician anywhere in the state, know that the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation requires anyone in the state who works with electrical equipment and service to hold a state license.
Note that there are defined exceptions to this state regulation.
These are the electrician licenses issued by the state.
All of these licenses require the passing of a state examination:
- A Residential Wireman– this license requires 4,000 hours of supervised field training.
- A Journeyman or Journeyperson Electrician – this license requires 8,000 hours under a Texas-licensed Master Electrician’s direct supervision.
- A Master Electrician – this license is issued for someone who already holds a Journeyman license for a minimum of two years. The master electrician license in Texas requires the accumulation of 12,000 hours of Master Electrician supervision.
According to the BLS’s statisticians, in May 2021, Texas ranked as the second-highest electrician employment level, with the number of professionals exceeding 52,000, with a mean yearly salary of $53,080, which is approximately 10% below the median salary of the more than 710,000 professional electricians working in the country.
About 600 electricians were employed in the greater McAllen metro area.
The median yearly wage for these Brownsville electricians for 2021 was $42,280.
1 Southern Careers Institute
Southern Careers Institute offers one of the quality electrician occupational training programs in the McAllen area that qualifies for the on-the-job training requirements defined by the TDLR, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
This electrician training program from Southern Careers Institute prepares graduates for entry-level roles in fields of commercial and residential electricity if they work at all times directly under a licensed Texas master electrician.
Southern Careers Institute’s electrician training program offers hands-on instruction in these relevant electrician responsibilities, including installing, maintaining, operating, and repairing electrical systems within residential or commercial markets.
Address: 1500 N Jackson Rd, Pharr, TX 78577
2 South Texas College - Technology or Pecan Campuses
There are two campuses of South Texas College – The Technology and Pecan Campus, which offer several electrical technology-related programs that prepare students for rewarding electrician careers in residential or commercial work areas.
This includes a 30-credit certificate program for electrician assistants and a 60-credit AAS degree in Electrician Technology.
Southern Texas College’s electrician training program graduates are eligible to sit for the journeyman assistant’s certification or the journeyman’s exam after acquiring 8,000 hours of education/field experience.
The certificate requires a capstone project, while the Associate of Applied Science in Electrical Technology degree includes an internship to gain valuable real-world experience.
Address: 700 W Military Hwy, McAllen, TX 78503
3 International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, since its inception in 1924, has been committed to supporting the needs of professional electricians throughout the country.
The McAllen Chapter of the IBEW (Local 1015) also offers various education and training programs.
The IBEW in McAllen offers the JATC – the Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee to those who are qualified and have an interest in becoming a professional electrician that requires five years or 8,000 hours of supervised work and 180 hours of classroom instruction per year.
The IBEW 1015 also provides continuing education options that meet the TDLR regulations.
Address: 224 N McColl Rd # C, McAllen, TX 78501
Schools Summary Table
| Rank | School | |
|---|---|---|
|
#1 | Southern Careers Institute |
|
#2 | South Texas College - Technology or Pecan Campuses |
|
#3 | International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers |
Read the full guide: How to Become an Electrician
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