Apprentice job in the US

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kimoaj

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Hi guys !.
(sorry for making an off-topic thread)

My name is Joakim and I`m a 20 years old boy from the North of Norway.

I`m crazy about motorcycles and sleds and I`ve been wrenching them since the age of 12. I still remember when my little automatic Honda jumped off our balcony due to a faulty mounted carburator slide, haha.

Anyway, non of the local workshops had free apprentice jobs, I`m joking about moving to the US, so I`m just wondering how the apprentice stuff works in US?. How many years do you have to work before you get the "title" and how is the payment?.

Joakim :)
 
Generally, automotive or small engine service techs in the USA are not apprenticed. People that need mechanics hire them based primarily on formal education. There are many many places where someone can get the necessary education on small engine repair and you don't have to wait for a slot to open up, you just pay the tuition and show up for class.

My son decided he wanted to be a service tech (mechanic). After high school, he spent a 1.5 years at Wyotech in Laramie Wyoming and graduated with an Associate's Degree in automotive technology. He started getting job offers to work as a mechanic as soon as he finished school. He almost took a job with a GM car dealership - they planned to send him on for factory specialty training on General Motors vehicles - but the kid loves motorcycles too, so he's now enrolled at Motorcycle Mechanics Institute in Phoenix and is doing another 1.5 years of education on Harley Davidson motorcycles.
 
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The same type of pre employement training is available in most provinces in Canada in most trades. Apprenticeship training is offered in provinces where industry can demonstrate the need for training and certification. In Alberta, OPET (outdoor power equipment technician) is a designated trade. It has four specialities, marine, lawn and garden, motorcycle and quad/smowmobile. I think the term of indentureship is 4 years. Apprentices learn skills of the trade in the workplace and attend techncial training for 7 or 8 weeks during each year of the program. While motorcycle mechanic is a trade offered in more than one province, I think OPET is only offered in Alta. Hope this helps you.
 
BigMac, a buddy of mine's son is going to Wyotech right now. I had never heard of it before then. Well I am a licensed Electrician. I work in a manufacturing type enviroment with high speed automation, etc. As a person in the trades, especially Unionized you work as an apprentice for awhile before you are eligible to take your state test. In the electrical field it is four years or three if you have an accredited school that is accepted by the State board of Electricity. (at least for Minnesota)
These apprenticeships can vary from trade to trade (carpentry, plumbing, pipe fitting, etc.)

I did the three years of apprenticeship because I have a AAS degree from Dunwoody Institute (now called Dunwoody College)
 
journeyman said:
BigMac, a buddy of mine's son is going to Wyotech right now. I had never heard of it before then. Well I am a licensed Electrician. I work in a manufacturing type enviroment with high speed automation, etc. As a person in the trades, especially Unionized you work as an apprentice for awhile before you are eligible to take your state test. In the electrical field it is four years or three if you have an accredited school that is accepted by the State board of Electricity. (at least for Minnesota)
These apprenticeships can vary from trade to trade (carpentry, plumbing, pipe fitting, etc.)

I did the three years of apprenticeship because I have a AAS degree from Dunwoody Institute (now called Dunwoody College)
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As I understand it, Automotive Technician (also motorcycle/snowmobile and other small engine venues) in the US is not specifically a trade with an apprenticeship program. There is no state licensing as there is for electricians or plumbers. If you have two years of hands-on experience, you can start taking the ASE certification tests, and those are nice credentials to have, especially if you're looking for a high-paying job, but there's no requirement to do so.

Individual employers may use "apprentice" as a job classification for someone just starting out, for purposes of pay scale, but it's not the same thing as the apprentice-journeyman progression found in the those other trades.

It's worth noting that tuition for the Associate Degree program at Wyotech is $20,000. By comparison, an AD from Motorcycle Mechanics Institute is a bargain at $18,000.
 
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I have an associates degree in aircraft maintenance. With that and my military time I am eligable for FAA certification exams. The exams for FAA cert are very difficult. The are in two parts, one hands on the other written.

My computer certifications were a bit easier. I did a year of pretty intense self study and took the exams.

I had no experiance on computers at all, the certification was enough to get my foot in the door. FAA certification (I would have been to the inspector/trainer level) is big bux if ya want to work on airplanes....

I would think anything you can get from an accredited orginization will get you a huge advantage over someone with nothing. There are probably internet based programs for snowmobile/motorcycle tech somewhere.... just make sure it is something that will be acknowledged.
 
Hey guys thanks for all the replys!.

So in US it`s more common to take a "course" that you pay for and then take an exam and get papers on it. It sounds somewhat easier then here in Norway. You cannot get a job and work as a mechanic at a shop unless you have the 100% correct education, for example, all the motorcycle / car etc. mechanics have the exact same education. Ofcourse the schools are different, but the "government" (or what it`s called) has set a standard for what the schools has to teach the students.

In Norway you first go to a basic cours "Basic mechanics" , you learn about iron, welding, machining end electrics. When you have finished this course you can choose from several different "next stage" courses, and again, all of them are "standarizised" (gees, bad spelling) by the government.

I first went to the basic course (lasts for one year) and then I went to a course called "VK1 kjøretøy" (veichles). This also lasted one year.
I finished with 11B`s , B on the main exam and A on the English written/oral (combination exam) exam, so without bragging I think I have good grades, no one beat me grade-wise.
In Norway you have to work as an apprentice for two years and you then take a final test to prove your skills.

I guess my papirs doesn`t mean shit in the US?.
 
That may not be true Kimoaj. Your papers may be valued by other counties. Canada and the US both have a process that assesses off shore credentials. The process is call RPL (recognition of prior learning). You probably won't be able to trade your ticket in for a US equivalent, but your ticket may get you a chance to challenge the equivalent US certification examination. I would check the US immigration web site for details. I beleive that an application to immigrate is strenghtened when the candidate is certified in a trade. Hope this helps you. Good luck.
 
Thanks for the reply ModMMax!. Interesting, I will check that out. Do you know the url for the US immigration web site?.
Thanks for helping me out!.

Neonblue, my last name is Pedersen?.
 
ModMMax said:
That may not be true Kimoaj. Your papers may be valued by other counties. Canada and the US both have a process that assesses off shore credentials. The process is call RPL (recognition of prior learning). You probably won't be able to trade your ticket in for a US equivalent, but your ticket may get you a chance to challenge the equivalent US certification examination. I would check the US immigration web site for details. I beleive that an application to immigrate is strenghtened when the candidate is certified in a trade. Hope this helps you. Good luck.
Click to expand...

Again, bearing in mind that "certification" to work in an automotive related trade is not a requirement by any government agency in the US, unlike working in one of the other trades like plumbing or electrician. ASE certification is entirely voluntary. An auto dealer or snowmobile dealer, for example, might be very impressed with the OP's Norwegian credentials and decide to hire him without additional training.

Immigration is another issue. Getting a work visa isn't going to be necessarily dependant on training or certification, but would certainly be made more likely if he already had a job lined up. If serious, he could come to the USA, look for a job in the field, and apply for a work visa if successful in getting one.
 
Ok guys thanks alot for the info!. I`m much wiser now on this subject.

I think it sounds like the american system is much better, but that`s only because it`s to my advantage.
A friend of mine is the best car mechanic I have ever met, but he isn`t good at going to school. For him it seems "stupid" having to take a to year course to learn things that he already know, infact he knows alot more about cars and wrenching then all the students finishing those courses. The US system would have fit him much better I think. But then again he has to show his skills somehow and I bet that isn`t easy without the right papers.

Gees maybe I should call Paul SR and ask if he needs another mechanic, hehe.

In what parts of America is normal to ride bikes in the summer and sleds in the winter?. Like we do here in Norway.. .

:)
 
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