Electrician schools in Washington

To become a general electrician in Washington, you need an apprenticeship. School can shorten one, or count toward a narrower certificate, if the program is on the approved list of the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I).

School

You pay

$13,623 – $59,205

for an approved program, in total

15 to 27 months
Counts for up to half your hours

Compare the 31 programs

Apprenticeship

You’re paid

$14.60 – $24.75 an hour

on day one

8,000 hours of paid work
Every hour counts toward your certificate

See the 34 apprenticeships

Costs: Career Bridge, the state’s training directory · Pay: L&I’s apprenticeship registry

See school and apprenticeship side by side

What school can do for you

Count toward a narrower certificate
Certificates such as homes and apartments, or low voltage, need 4,000 hours of supervised work as a trainee, with no apprenticeship. An approved school program counts for up to half of them.
See the schools
Shorten an apprenticeship
A general electrician needs an 8,000-hour registered apprenticeship. A two-year school program can stand in for up to 2 years of its work, if the apprenticeship agrees.
Help you get into an apprenticeship
4 programs say so in their descriptions.

While you’re enrolled in an approved program, you need an L&I training certificate. Apply at L&I (L&I’s site)

Compare the schools

31 programs from the state’s training directory and L&I’s approved list. No school pays to be on this list or for its place on it.

What kind of work do you want?

Search by school, program or city

Area

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31 programs

How to read the results

Finished is the share of students who completed the program, out of everyone who left it. Working is the share of those who finished with a job 7 to 9 months later, not counting self-employed people. Pay an hour is the median the state publishes for the program. All 3 cover the latest 3 years of data. Where there are no results, the program is too small or too new, or the school hasn’t sent data. The bars share one scale, up to $59,205.

Counts toward a certificate

12 programs

L&I’s approved list names these programs.

Electrician Low Voltage Fire/SecurityClover Park Technical College · Lakewood and online
Low voltage: alarms, security, data
$13,623total cost
15 monthsCertificate
Finished
85%
Working
91%
Pay an hour
$29
Prepares you for an apprenticeship
Details
$10,335 tuition + $1,705 fees + $1,583 books and supplies
Results cover both of Clover Park’s fire and security programs.
Electrical Maintenance & AutomationSpokane Community College · Spokane
Repairs outside homes
$15,712total cost
24 monthsAssociate degree
Finished
74%
Working
86%
Pay an hour
$27
Details
$11,302 tuition + $1,335 fees + $3,075 books and supplies
Industrial Technology - ElectronicsWenatchee Valley College · Wenatchee
Repairs outside homes
$15,758total cost
24 monthsAssociate degree
Finished
73%
Working
89%
Pay an hour
$26
Details
$14,928 tuition + $830 fees
Facilities Maintenance EngineerBates Technical College · Tacoma
Repairs outside homes
$16,868total cost
18 monthsAssociate degree
Finished
56%
Working
0%
Pay an hour
$25
The state shows 0% working next to $25 an hour for this program. Ask the school what its graduates earn.
Details
$10,084 tuition + $4,894 fees + $1,890 books and supplies
Electrician Low Voltage Fire/SecurityClover Park Technical College · Lakewood and online
Low voltage: alarms, security, data
$19,324total cost
24 monthsAssociate degree
Finished
85%
Working
91%
Pay an hour
$29
Prepares you for an apprenticeship
Details
$15,239 tuition + $2,501 fees + $1,583 books and supplies
You start it after the certificate above, or with the instructor’s permission.
Results cover both of Clover Park’s fire and security programs.
Electrical ConstructionBates Technical College · Tacoma
All electrical work, as part of an apprenticeship
$20,527total cost
27 monthsAssociate degree
Finished
80%
Working
74%
Pay an hour
$26
Details
$18,367 tuition + $2,160 fees
You get in by interview, with an English and math test like an apprenticeship’s.
Information Technology & Communication SystemsPerry Technical Institute · Yakima
Low voltage: alarms, security, data
$53,543total cost
24 monthsAssociate degree
Finished
72%
Working
85%
Pay an hour
$25
Details
$48,848 tuition + $1,860 fees + $2,835 books and supplies
Electrical TechnologyPerry Technical Institute · Yakima
All electrical work, as part of an apprenticeship
$59,205total cost
24 monthsCertificate
Finished
80%
Working
90%
Pay an hour
$27
Details
$53,920 tuition + $1,080 fees + $4,205 books and supplies
Industrial Electricity Technology (the school’s page)Big Bend Community College · Moses Lake
Repairs outside homes
Not in the state’s training directory, so no cost, length or results are published.
Industrial Engineering (the school’s page)Renton Technical College · Renton
Repairs outside homes
Not in the state’s training directory, so no cost, length or results are published.
Energy Systems Technology (the school’s page)Walla Walla Community College · Walla Walla
Repairs outside homes
Not in the state’s training directory, so no cost, length or results are published.
Details
L&I lists 3 of its concentrations: mechanical electrical technology, industrial mechanics and renewable energy technology.
Water Management Technology (the school’s page)Walla Walla Community College · Walla Walla
Water pumps and irrigation
Not in the state’s training directory, so no cost, length or results are published.

Check with the school first

9 programs

L&I names the school, but not this exact program. Ask the school in writing whether it earns work hours.

Mechanical Electrical TechnicianWalla Walla Community College · Walla Walla, Clarkston and online
Repairs outside homes
$6,848total cost
9 monthsShort certificate
No results published
Details
Its classes are part of Walla Walla’s Energy Systems Technology degree, which L&I lists.
Electrical Systems TechnologyWalla Walla Community College · Walla Walla and online
Repairs outside homes
$7,503total cost
9 monthsCertificate
No results published
Details
It’s the first year of Walla Walla’s Energy Systems Technology degree, which L&I lists.
Electrical ConstructionBellingham Technical College · Bellingham and online
Homes and apartments, or repairs outside homes
$9,300total cost
9 monthsCertificate
Finished
90%
Working
79%
Pay an hour
$23
Details
L&I lists Bellingham’s electrician training for these 2 certificates without naming the award.
Results cover all 3 of Bellingham’s electrician programs.
Industrial MechanicsWalla Walla Community College · Clarkston and online
Repairs outside homes
$9,514total cost
9 monthsCertificate
No results published
Details
$4,818 tuition + $4,696 books and supplies
L&I lists the Energy Systems Technology degree with this concentration. This is a certificate.
Electrical ConstructionBates Technical College · Tacoma
All electrical work, as part of an apprenticeship
$9,515total cost
12 monthsCertificate
No results published
Prepares you for an apprenticeship
Details
$8,510 tuition + $1,005 fees
L&I lists Bates’s electrical construction program without naming the award. The college says this certificate prepares you to apply to the Southwest Washington Electrical JATC.
Commercial Building EngineeringRenton Technical College · Renton
Repairs outside homes
$13,970total cost
18 monthsCertificate
Finished
54%
Working
81%
Pay an hour
$31
Details
L&I lists Renton’s commercial building engineering without naming the award.
Results cover both of Renton’s building engineering programs.
ElectricianBellingham Technical College · Bellingham and online
Homes and apartments, or repairs outside homes
$15,500total cost
15 monthsAssociate degree
Finished
90%
Working
79%
Pay an hour
$23
Details
L&I lists Bellingham’s electrician training for these 2 certificates without naming the award.
Results cover all 3 of Bellingham’s electrician programs.
Commercial Building EngineeringRenton Technical College · Renton
Repairs outside homes
$15,570total cost
18 monthsAssociate degree
Finished
54%
Working
81%
Pay an hour
$31
Details
L&I lists Renton’s commercial building engineering without naming the award.
Results cover both of Renton’s building engineering programs.
Electrician (Transfer)Bellingham Technical College · Bellingham and online
Homes and apartments, or repairs outside homes
$16,000total cost
15 monthsAssociate degree
Finished
90%
Working
79%
Pay an hour
$23
Details
L&I lists Bellingham’s electrician training for these 2 certificates without naming the award.
Results cover all 3 of Bellingham’s electrician programs.

Doesn’t count toward a certificate

10 programs

These aren’t on L&I’s approved list. Most are online courses, and L&I doesn’t accept online classes for a trainee’s classroom hours either.

Doesn’t count toward a certificate
Program	Length	Total cost	Finished
Electrical TechnicianEdmonds College · Online, or EverettA course sold through Ed2Go.	12 monthsCertificate	$2,486	No results published
Residential ElectricianEdmonds College · Online, or EverettA course sold through Ed2Go.	12 monthsCertificate	$2,855	No results published
Residential ElectricianShoreline College · Online	12 monthsCredential	$2,855	No results published
Residential Electrician (Tools Included)Shoreline College · Online	12 monthsCertificate	$3,460	No results published
Residential ElectricianClover Park Technical College · Online	12 monthsCertificate	$3,870	No results published
Residential ElectricianCentral Washington University Continuing Education · OnlineThe state lists $3,005 as tuition and again as fees, so this total may count it twice.	12 monthsCertificate	$6,010$3,005 tuition + $3,005 fees	No results published
Electrical TraineeSpokane Community College · Spokane	9 monthsCertificate	$6,548$5,621 tuition + $493 fees + $434 books and supplies	No results published
Electrical SalesSpokane Community College · SpokaneThe sales option of the Electrical Trainee certificate.	9 monthsCertificate	$6,794$5,721 tuition + $493 fees + $580 books and supplies	No results published
Residential Electrician (Tools Included)Central Washington University Continuing Education · OnlineThe state lists $3,610 as tuition and again as fees, so this total may count it twice.	12 monthsCertificate	$7,220$3,610 tuition + $3,610 fees	No results published
Energy Systems Technology - Electrical Heating and Cooling ConcentrationWalla Walla Community College · Walla WallaPrepares you for an apprenticeshipL&I lists 3 other concentrations of this degree, not this one.	24 monthsCertificate	$11,196	No results published

Before you pay a school, ask it 10 questions

Ask for the answers in writing: your total cost, whether your hours count toward a certificate, and how many people who started finished.

See the 10 questions

Already a trainee? Classes to renew your certificate

12 classes

A trainee needs 48 hours of approved classes to renew a training certificate every 2 years, and 96 hours before the general journey level exam (48 for a specialty). The Construction Industry Training Council sells these classes one at a time and says L&I approved them. They don’t earn work hours.

$2,005 to $2,671a class

3 to 4 monthsFridays and Saturdays, or weeknights

Up to 6 sitesBellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco, Puyallup

Already a trainee? Classes to renew your certificate
Class	Length	Total cost	Finished	Working	Pay an hour
Class 01-302 (the school’s page)Fridays and Saturdays · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and Puyallup	3 monthsCertificate	$2,005$1,890 tuition + $115 fees	No results published
Class 01-402 (the school’s page)Fridays and Saturdays · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and Puyallup	3 monthsCertificate	$2,005$1,890 tuition + $115 fees	No results published
Class 01-403 (the school’s page)Fridays and Saturdays · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and Puyallup	3 monthsCertificate	$2,005$1,890 tuition + $115 fees	No results published
Class 02-202 (the school’s page)Fridays and Saturdays · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and Puyallup	3 monthsCertificate	$2,005$1,890 tuition + $115 fees	No results published
Class 02-203 (the school’s page)Fridays and Saturdays · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and Puyallup	3 monthsCertificate	$2,005$1,890 tuition + $115 fees	No results published
Class 06-102 (the school’s page)Fridays and Saturdays · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and Puyallup	3 monthsCertificate	$2,005$1,890 tuition + $115 fees	No results published
Class 06-103 (the school’s page)Fridays and Saturdays · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and Puyallup	3 monthsCertificate	$2,005$1,890 tuition + $115 fees	No results published
Class 01-303 (the school’s page)Weeknights · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and Puyallup	3 monthsCertificate	$2,016$1,890 tuition + $126 fees	No results published
Class 06-101 (the school’s page)Fridays and Saturdays · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and PuyallupTrainees take these classes while they work, so this pay is pay while training.	4 monthsCertificate	$2,578$1,890 tuition + $115 fees + $573 books and supplies	53%	88%	$58
Class 02-201 (the school’s page)Fridays and Saturdays · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and Puyallup	4 monthsCertificate	$2,653$1,890 tuition + $115 fees + $648 books and supplies	No results published
Class 01-401 (the school’s page)Weeknights · 6 sites: Bellevue, Vancouver, Spokane, Marysville, Pasco and Puyallup	4 monthsCertificate	$2,671$1,890 tuition + $115 fees + $666 books and supplies	No results published
Class 06-301 (the school’s page)Fridays and Saturdays · 3 sites: Bellevue, Spokane and Puyallup	4 monthsCertificate	$2,671$1,890 tuition + $115 fees + $666 books and supplies	No results published

Sources

Career Bridge, the Washington Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board’s training directory: each program’s cost, length, award, place, results and description, and how the results are measured
L&I, approved electrical construction trade training schools: which programs are approved, for which certificate, and the credit of up to half the work hours
RCW 19.28.191: the 8,000-hour apprenticeship for the general journey level exam, and up to 2 years of a two-year school program in place of its work
L&I, electrical apprenticeship: general journey level work needs a registered apprenticeship, and each apprenticeship decides school credit
L&I, electrician certificates: the 4,000-hour specialties and the classroom hours before an exam
L&I, electrical trainee and RCW 19.28.161: the training certificate and the 48 hours of classes to renew it
L&I, apprenticeship registry: what the 34 registered programs pay on day one

L&I’s list also names 13 heating, cooling and appliance repair programs (06A, 06B and 07D). This page covers the other certificates. The rows come from every Career Bridge result for “electrician” and “electrical,” and from every school on L&I’s list.

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Alerts for: Electrician in Washington