How to Choose HVAC Certification Training Catonsville MD

How to Choose the Right Heating and Cooling Degree Program near Catonsville Maryland

air conditioner condensers in Catonsville MD Once you have decided on a career as a heating and cooling specialist, the next action is to look for an HVAC trade school near Catonsville MD. But with so many to pick from, how do you select the best one to get the training that you require? A number of future students will make their selection based exclusively on the price of tuition or how near the school is to their home. While these are significant concerns, they are not the only ones to investigate. A few of the other things that you need to investigate are the graduation completion rates of the HVAC schools, their reputations, and if they are accredited by professional trade organizations. Those and other benchmarks will be discussed in more detail later in this article. But before we examine how to pick an HVAC technical school, let’s look at what a heating and a/c professional does to become a licensed qualified tradesman.

Becoming an HVAC Specialist

Catonsville MD HVAC Tech installing water heater HVAC is an acronym that is commonly used in the business that stands for “Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning”. HVAC techs provide services for the installation, repair and maintenance of air conditioners, furnaces, boilers, hot water heaters and heating systems. As skilled tradesmen, they are typically mandated to be licensed, although every state and local municipality has its own prerequisites. Acquiring professional certification is not required, but an alternative way for Catonsville MD HVAC specialists to demonstrate that they are highly skilled and knowledgeable in their area of expertise. There are multiple acknowledged certifications within the field that are offered. Here are some of the important ones.

North American Technician Excellence (NATE). NATE is a nationally recognized certification for HVAC technicians. The certification is earned by passing a proficiency exam and can be acquired in one or more specialties.
HVAC Excellence. This certification makes available both a professional and a master specialist credential. 2 years of field experience in addition to passing a comprehensive examination are needed for the professional level certification. Master specialists need to have three years of experience together with a passing score on the professional level exam. Similar to NATE, certifications are made available in multiple specialties.
EPA Section 608. This certification is required for techs that handle refrigerants. There are 3 types of certification offered, one for small appliances, and the other two for low and high pressure refrigerants.

Because licensing could be required in your area, and you may also wish to earn certification, it’s important that you choose an HVAC technical school that will prepare you for both. And since you will more than likely be dealing with refrigerants, make sure that the school you select readies you for passing the EPA Section 608 exams.

HVAC Degree and Certificate Classes

radiator heater in Catonsville MD home There are a variety of alternatives offered for HVAC instruction in a trade or technical school. You can attain a certificate, an Associate Degree, or a Bachelor’s Degree. Obtaining a certificate will take the lesser period of time, typically accomplished in just 6 months, although some programs are longer. A certificate will qualify you for most HVAC positions, particularly if you are licensed and have certification applicable to the position. The degree training programs may provide a competitive advantage for securing employment and will provide more extensive training than the certificate programs. Below is a short summary of each credential offered near Catonsville MD.

Certificate. Usually 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 exhaustive background of heating and cooling systems than the certificate program. Normally taking 2 years to finish, many degrees incorporate an internship or work-study program.
Bachelor’s Degree. The Bachelor’s Degree in HVAC is geared more for a career in management as well as business ownership. Some programs require an Associate Degree, while others are a traditional four year program. In addition to learning how to service and maintain heating and air conditioning systems, you will also learn how to design them.

Choosing the ideal credential program will be dependent on what your future career aspirations are, as well as the time and money that you have to invest. One possibility is to start with a certificate or perhaps an Associate Degree program, and after gaining some experience in the trade in Catonsville MD, eventually going back to earn a Bachelor’s Degree. If this is your approach, make certain to ask the HVAC tech school you are considering about how their returning student program works.

HVAC Online Schools

Catonsville MD student attending HVAC school online Enrolling in an HVAC program online is one option to attaining your training and earning a certificate or degree. Almost all schools will call for some attendance on campus to participate in hands on training. Many also sponsor internship or work-study programs in addition to or instead of practical lab work. But since the balance of the classes can be participated in online, this approach may be a more convenient solution for many Catonsville MD students that are pressed for time. And many online degree programs are less expensive than other traditional options. Even commuting expenses from Catonsville and study materials can be lessened, helping to make schooling more budget-friendly. And numerous online programs are fully accredited (more on this later). So if your job or family responsibilities have left you with minimal time to attend classes, maybe an online HVAC degree program will make it more convenient to fit school into your active schedule.

Questions to Ask HVAC Certification Classes

Questions to ask Catonsville MD HVAC training schools After you have chosen the type of certificate or degree that you would like to earn, either on campus or online, you can begin to limit your list of schools. As you are certainly aware, there are many HVAC technical schools in the Catonsville MD area and all over the USA to pick from. That’s why it is essential to have a checklist of key qualifiers when making school assessments. As previously stated in our opening paragraph, location and tuition will undoubtedly be the initial two aspects you will take into consideration. Following are several additional ones that you will want to explore before enrolling in your school of choice.

Accreditation. Numerous HVAC vocational schools in the Catonsville MD area have attained either a regional or a national accreditation. They may attain Institutional Accreditation, which focuses on the school’s programs as a whole, or Programmatic Accreditation, which relates to an individual program, for instance HVAC technology. Verify that the school is accredited by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting organization, which includes the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. Along with helping guarantee that you obtain an excellent education, it can assist in securing financial assistance or student loans, which are in many cases unavailable for non-accredited programs. Also, some states require that the HVAC training course be accredited for it to be approved for licensing.

High Completion Rates. Ask the Heating and Cooling schools you are considering what their completion rates are. The completion rate is the percentage or portion of students who enroll in and finish the course. A low completion rate may indicate that students were dissatisfied with the program and quit. It may also signify that the teachers were not competent to train the students. It’s similarly imperative that the schools have higher job placement rates. Older and/or more reputable schools may have a more extensive directory of alumni, which can mean more contacts for the school to use for their apprenticeship and job placement programs. A high job placement rate will not only affirm that the school has an excellent reputation within the field, but also that it has the network of Catonsville MD HVAC employers to help students obtain apprenticeships or employment.

Apprenticeship Programs. Many HVAC trade programs are taught along with an apprenticeship or an internship program. Those participating vocational and trade schools will help place you in an apprenticeship program within their network of Heating and Cooling businesses or labor unions. Ask if the schools you are reviewing have working relationships with local Catonsville MD HVAC professionals. An apprenticeship not only provides a valuable experience by supplying practical training, but it also furnishes job opportunities and helps to establish relationships in the local HVAC professional community.

Modern Facilities. Make sure that the campus facilities and the tools that you will be trained on are state-of-the-art and what you will be using in the field. If you are presently in an internship or an apprenticeship, consult with the HVAC technician you are working under concerning what you should be looking for. If not, ask a local Catonsville MD HVAC contracting company if they can give you some suggestions. Additionally keep in mind that unless you are able to move, the school must be within commuting distance of your Catonsville MD residence. Remember that if you decide to enroll in an out-of-state school, in addition to relocation costs there can be increased tuition fees compared to in-state residents.

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

Flexible Scheduling. Confirm that the class schedules for the programs you are reviewing are flexible enough to meet your needs. If you can only go to classes at night or on weekends near Catonsville MD, check that the schools you are considering offer those choices. If you can only attend part-time, make sure that the school you select allows part-time enrollment. Finally, check out what the policy is to make-up classes should you miss any due to work, sickness or family responsibilities.

Considering an HVAC School near Catonsville MD?

Perhaps you are considering enrolling in an HVAC training program in the Catonsville Maryland area. If so, you may find the following background information about the location of your new school campus both interesting and informative.

Catonsville, Maryland

Catonsville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 41,567 at the 2010 census.[3] The community lies to the west of Baltimore along the city's border. Catonsville contains the majority of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), a major public research university with close to 14,000 students.

Before European colonists settled in present-day Catonsville, the area was occupied by the Piscataway tribe. These Native Americans had good relations with the first European settlers in the area, but wars and diseases caused their population to decline. The remainder of the tribe’s population gradually dispersed. In the early 1700s, colonists slowly settled in the area, and roads were built. The first of these settlements in the present-day Catonsville area was Johnnycake Town, settled in the 1720s.[4] Johnnycake Town was named after the kind of cornbread sold to travelers at the local tavern. Although Johnnycake Town has since disappeared from maps, its main roads, Johnnycake and Rolling Road, still exist today.[5] Rolling Road was used to transport tobacco from plantations south to the Patapsco River on horse-drawn wagons. In 1787, the Ellicott family built a road, called the Frederick Turnpike, to transport goods from their flour mill, Ellicott Mills, to the Baltimore harbor. The turnpike was built just south of where Johnnycake Town was. Charles Carroll, who was the last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence, owned land next to the newly built road. He instructed his son-in-law, Richard Caton, to develop the area along the road. He gave his name to the community and called it “Catonville”, although the name was changed to “Catonsville” in the 1830s. For decades, the village remained as a quiet farming community. Businesses sprang up along the Frederick Turnpike to cater to travelers traveling from Ellicott City to the Baltimore harbor. Naturally, Catonsville served as a layover stop for the travelers, and the town increasingly grew and developed.[4] The pleasant surroundings attracted wealthy Baltimorean merchants, who, eager to escape the summer heat, built large Victorian and colonial summer homes there. Many of these homes still stand today.[6] Starting in 1862, horsecar services connected Catonsville to Baltimore, and in 1884, the Catonsville Short Line railroad was built, providing 8 roundtrip trains to Baltimore daily. This allowed people to live in Catonsville but commute to work in Baltimore. Commuter traffic exploded in the 1890s with the construction of electric streetcar lines and fancy housing developments. Catonsville had become one of the first commuter suburbs in the United States. Baltimore had tried to annex Catonsville, although their attempts have all been failures. Their last attempt was in 1918. Homes of all sizes were being constructed rapidly until the 1950s when much of land around the Frederick Turnpike had been converted into housing.

In 2002, the Maryland legislature issued a proclamation declaring Catonsville to be "Music City, Maryland", because of the concentration of musical retail stores, venues and educational facilities in the area.

How to Choose HVAC Certification Training Catonsville MD

Picking the right HVAC training course is a crucial first step toward a gratifying career in the heating & cooling industry. You originally came to this website because you wanted more information regarding How to Choose HVAC Certification Training. However, as we have covered in this article, you should choose an HVAC vocational school and a degree or certificate program that are both accredited and have exceptional reputations within the HVAC community. Other factors to search for are ample hands-on training and state-of-the-art facilities. You should go to each of the schools in person 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. Also, ask about scheduling choices and whether evening or weekend classes are offered if needed. And remember to inquire about financial aid and student loan options too. If you ask the appropriate questions as we have laid out in our checklist for comparing schools, you’ll be able to filter your options so that you can make an educated decision. With the appropriate training, hard work and dedication, you can eventually become a licensed HVAC specialist in Catonsville MD.