1 answer
Rudy
Student
Yuma, Arizona
1
Question
Asked
434 views
How can I become a hvac technician in the Us?
I’m in middle school I wanna know what classes I would have to take in high school to become a hvac technician. I also would like to know what’s the worst and good parts of being a hvac technician.
Login to comment
1 answer
John C
Software Engineer
4
Answers
Updated
John’s Answer
If your high school has a technical/vocational track, that's the best way to get exposed to the trades.
I did a quick search for options around Yuma, and it looks like they have a couple:
1. STEDY (Southwest Technical Education District of Yuma) is a training program for high school students interested in the trades. Looks like this might even be free!
2. The CTE (Career and Technical Education) program through Arizona Western College. This is a community college offering.
Otherwise, after high school, you'd want to attend a trade school to become a HVAC technician. Then you would look for a job with a local HVAC company to get some real-world experience.
I don't work in HVAC, but I know folks in the trades. For HVAC, I know there are residential vs. commerical jobs. If you work on residential units, that would be working at houses, apartments, hotels, etc. (places where people live). For commerical, these are very large and tend to be on rooftops, or in industrial settings. You might find that you prefer working on one vs. the other.
Good parts about being an HVAC technician is that your job will always be in demand, and there's a possibility that you could eventually go into business for yourself (if you are so inclined). You're also more likely to have friends that work in the trades, meaning you'll know people that can weld, do plumbing, and fix or build things. Another good thing is that there isn't as much school required to get a job and start making money.
Bad parts, this is a physical job, where you can be working in some demanding (hot/cold) environments.
I did a quick search for options around Yuma, and it looks like they have a couple:
1. STEDY (Southwest Technical Education District of Yuma) is a training program for high school students interested in the trades. Looks like this might even be free!
2. The CTE (Career and Technical Education) program through Arizona Western College. This is a community college offering.
Otherwise, after high school, you'd want to attend a trade school to become a HVAC technician. Then you would look for a job with a local HVAC company to get some real-world experience.
I don't work in HVAC, but I know folks in the trades. For HVAC, I know there are residential vs. commerical jobs. If you work on residential units, that would be working at houses, apartments, hotels, etc. (places where people live). For commerical, these are very large and tend to be on rooftops, or in industrial settings. You might find that you prefer working on one vs. the other.
Good parts about being an HVAC technician is that your job will always be in demand, and there's a possibility that you could eventually go into business for yourself (if you are so inclined). You're also more likely to have friends that work in the trades, meaning you'll know people that can weld, do plumbing, and fix or build things. Another good thing is that there isn't as much school required to get a job and start making money.
Bad parts, this is a physical job, where you can be working in some demanding (hot/cold) environments.
Thank you, this is really helpful.