CNEST
Solar Electrical Job Training Grant
On Wednesday, January 6, 2010, the U.S. Department of Labor awarded the Austin Electrical Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee (AEJATC), Workforce Solutions, and ImagineSolar over $4.8 million to fund job training in solar electrical skills.
Comprehensive-National Electrican Solar Training (CNEST) will provide solar-specific training to entry-level, new-hire Construction Wireman/Construction Electricans (CWCEs), existing electrician apprentices, journeyman electricians, and electrical instructors. The entry point into CNEST for individuals not currently working in the electrical industry is as a CWCE.
ImagineSolar and the AEJATC will administer all training courses. What follows is a detailed description of the planned training roadmap.
Job seekers interested in joining this industry and beginning a career as a pre-apprentice CWCE are invited to begin the Eligibility and Application process. The application and more details on this process are posted on the Workforce Solutions website. The CNEST point of contact at Workforce Solutions is: Peter Brodeur [peter.brodeur "at" twc.state.tx.us]
For electricians that currently hold a Journeyworker or Master’s License, you may be eligible to take advance solar PV courses that prepare you to take the NABCEP Certified Installer Exam. Click here for more information about ImagineSolar’s CNEST Journeyworker Advanced Training.
Visit www.nabcep.org for details on exams and certification. New-hire CWCEs who are accepted into the CNEST training program and current apprentices will follow the training roadmap above. Both the General PV Solar and the Utility-Scale PV Solar courses will prepare individuals for immediate work in the solar-electrical field.
CNEST CWCEs and apprentices will receive instruction in a variety of topics directly relevant to the electrical industry, followed by coursework specific to general or utility-scale PV solar design and installation.
CNEST will provide this section of six classes as an introduction to the electrical trade.
CNEST CWCEs and apprentices who choose the General PV Solar track will attend one, 40-hour workshop, designed to cover residential and commercial solar instalation, and prepare them to take the NABCEP entry level exam.
CNEST CWCEs and apprentices who choose the Utility-Scale PV Solar track will attend five courses, totalling 48 hours, covering specific skills and components required by large solar installations. Utility-Scale trainees will also be prepared for the NABCEP entry level exam.
For electricians that hold a Journeyworker or Master’s License, they may be elegible to take the Advanced Solar PV workshops that prepare them for the NABCEP professional certification exam. Click here for more information about the CNEST Journeyworker Advanced Training.
