Solar Technical Training

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Dr. Greg Olsen instructs Southwestern Technical College students in techniques of greenhouse retrofit. The students spend about 30% of their time doing actual construction work, such as on this greenhouse that's being added to the Big Y Community Club in Cherokee, North Carolina. The Save the Children Foundation supplied money for materials, and the project is coordinated by Sequoyah Driver (Big Y Chairman) and Dean Suagee (Energy Planner for the Eastern Bank of the Cherokee Indians Tribal Renewable Energy Assistance and Planning Program).
Dr. Greg Olsen instructs Southwestern Technical College students in techniques of greenhouse retrofit. The students spend about 30% of their time doing actual construction work, such as on this greenhouse that's being added to the Big Y Community Club in Cherokee, North Carolina. The Save the Children Foundation supplied money for materials, and the project is coordinated by Sequoyah Driver (Big Y Chairman) and Dean Suagee (Energy Planner for the Eastern Bank of the Cherokee Indians Tribal Renewable Energy Assistance and Planning Program).
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Students in the Colorado Mountain College solar retrofit program—an intensive one year course of study—are installing a solar hot-air system on a home in Glenwood Springs, Colorado.
Students in the Colorado Mountain College solar retrofit program—an intensive one year course of study—are installing a solar hot-air system on a home in Glenwood Springs, Colorado.

Solar technical training may lead to a job that makes a real difference.

Would you rather be working at a job you can believe in . . . one in a field that’s as sure to grow as fossil fuels are sure to be depleted . . . one that makes a difference? Maybe you should consider attending solar technical training to become a solar/renewable energy technician, a professional who installs, maintains, operates, and tests renewable energy systems and performs energy audits. But how does one learn the skills needed to do such a job or to prove his or her qualifications to potential employers and customers?

Chances are, there’s a technical school or college in your region that can teach you what you need to know to get started. Across the country, such institutions are responding to the demand for qualified solar technicians by developing comprehensive training programs. In fact, the cry for competent solar practitioners is so strong that, in many cases, today’s students of solar technology already have job offers when they graduate.

The entries that follow this introduction summarize the programs offered by a sampling of schools around the U.S. But before you pick one, you need to make a basic decision: How far do you intend to go with your solar education?

You’ll notice that the listings are divided between training programs and two-year associate degree programs. Training programs, which provide a certificate of completion, are shorter, but they also tend to be more trade and less theory-oriented. For example, a two-year associate degree program might include courses in math and science to broaden your understanding of the principles of energy. What’s more, that degree program will probably require that you take general education courses (English, for example), as well as the specifically career-related curriculum.

  • Published on Jul 1, 1985
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