Electrician Classes in Oregon (Top Schools)

The demand for skilled workers is on the rise.

The State of Oregon Employment Department foresees that by 2024, electricians will have 16% more jobs available.

So now’s the time for you to pursue a career in the electrical industry.

Here’s how you can become an electrician in Oregon.

Potential Salary

As of May 2021, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the following salary information for Oregon electricians:

Mean Wage:

• Annually – $81,200
• Hourly – $39.04

Regional Salary

How to Become an Electrician in Oregon

The Electrical and Elevator Board (EEB) regulates and issues the licenses for the following individuals:

• S – General supervising electrician
• J – General journeyman electrician
• PS – Limited supervising electrician
• PJ – Limited journeyman manufacturing plant electrician
• LME – Limited maintenance electrician
• LR – Limited residential electrician
• LEA – Limited energy technician, Class A
• LEB – Limited energy technician, Class B
• LRT – Limited renewable energy technician
• SIG – Limited journeyman sign electrician
• ST – Limited journeyman stage electrician
• BME – Limited building maintenance electrician

Qualifications

The EEB requires that you meet these minimum qualifications for each license type:

S – General Supervising Electrician

• Must be a licensed OR journeyman electrician with 8,000 hours of experience; OR,
• Have met the qualifications to be a licensed OR journeyman electrician with 8,000 hours of on-the-job experience (300% rule applies)

J – General Journeyman Electrician

• Completed an OR approved apprenticeship program; OR,
• (Out-of-state) Completed 576 hours of classroom instruction and 8,000 hours of on-the-job experience with at least 1,000 hours each in residential, commercial, and industrial categories (300% rule applies); OR,
• (Out-of-state) 16,000 hours of work experience broken into specific work categories (300% rule applies)

PS – Limited Supervising Electrician

• Must be a licensed OR PJ electrician with 8,000 hours of experience; OR,
• Have met the qualifications to be a licensed OR PJ electrician with 8,000 hours of on-the-job experience (300% rule applies)

PJ – Limited Journeyman Manufacturing Plant Electrician

• Completed an OR approved apprenticeship program; OR,
• (Out-of-state) Completed 576 hours of classroom instruction and 8,000 hours of on-the-job experience in commercial and industrial categories (300% rule applies); OR,
• (Out-of-state) 16,000 hours of work experience in commercial and industrial categories (300% rule applies)

LME – Limited Maintenance Electrician

• Completed an OR approved apprenticeship program; OR,
• (Out-of-state) Completed 288 hours of classroom instruction and 4,000 hours of on-the-job training or experience (300% rule applies); OR,
• (Out-of-state) 8,000 hours of on-the-job experience broken into specific work categories (300% rule applies)

LR – Limited Residential Electrician

• Completed an OR approved apprenticeship program; OR,
• (Out-of-state) Completed 288 hours of classroom instruction and 4,000 hours of on-the-job residential experience (300% rule applies); OR,
• (Out-of-state) 8,000 hours of on-the-job residential experience (300% rule applies)

LEA – Limited Energy Technician, Class A

• Completed an OR approved apprenticeship program; OR,
• Completed 432 hours of classroom instruction and 6,000 hours of on-the-job training broken into specific categories (300% rule applies); OR,
• (Out-of-state) 12,000 hours of on-the-job work experience broken into specific categories (300% rule applies)
  • Must have experience in protective signaling installation of fire or life safety systems

LEB – Limited Energy Technician, Class B

• Completed an OR approved apprenticeship program; OR,
• Completed 32 hours of Board-approved training program and 4,000 hours of Board-approved apprenticeship program broken into specific categories (300% rule applies); OR,
• 8,000 hours of work experience broken into specific categories (300% rule applies)

LRT – Limited Renewable Energy Technician

• Completed an OR approved apprenticeship program

SIG – Limited Journeyman Sign Electrician

• Completed an OR approved apprenticeship program; OR,
• (Out-of-state) Completed the required classroom instruction and 4,000 hours of on-the-job sign electrical experience; OR,
• (Out-of-state) 8,000 hours of on-the-job sign experience

ST – Limited Journeyman Stage Electrician

• Completed an OR approved apprenticeship program; OR,
• (Out-of-state) Completed 150 hours of classroom instruction and 4,000 hours of on-the-job experience; OR,
• (Out-of-state) 8,000 hours of on-the-job stage experience broken into specific categories

BME – Limited Building Maintenance Electrician

• Completed an OR approved apprenticeship program; OR,
• 2,000 hours of on-the-job training or experience in maintenance, repair, and replacement of electrical appliances, light switches, light fixtures, fans, receptacles, and fluorescent ballasts (300% rule applies)

License Application

To apply, you must submit the following:

• Completed license application
• Application fee
  • S – General supervising electrician – $100
  • J – General journeyman electrician – $100
  • PS – Limited supervising electrician – $100
  • PJ – Limited journeyman manufacturing plant electrician – $100
  • LME – Limited maintenance electrician – $100
  • LR – Limited residential electrician – $100
  • LEA – Limited energy technician, Class A – $50
  • LEB – Limited energy technician, Class B – $50
  • LRT – Limited renewable energy technician – $50
  • SIG – Limited journeyman sign electrician – $50
  • ST – Limited journeyman stage electrician – $50
  • BME – Limited building maintenance electrician – $50
• Verification of work experience from each employer
• Proof of completing an OR or out-of-state approved apprenticeship program
• Official transcript of completing the required classroom instruction
• Copy of high school diploma, GED equivalent, or college degree
• Copy of out-of-state license(s), if applicable
• Recent 2×2 photo

Exam Details

The EEB will administer the licensure exams.

Here are the details about it:

• Exam type – open book
• No. of questions and duration
  • S – General supervising electrician – 64 questions in 4 hours
  • J – General journeyman electrician – 52 questions in 3 hours
  • PS – Limited supervising electrician – 64 questions in 4 hours
  • PJ – Limited journeyman manufacturing plant electrician – 52 questions in 3 hours
  • LME – Limited maintenance electrician – 28 questions in 2 hours
  • LR – Limited residential electrician – 52 questions in 3 hours
  • LEA – Limited energy technician, Class A – 52 questions in 3 hours
  • LEB – Limited energy technician, Class B – 28 questions in 2 hours
  • LRT – Limited renewable energy technician – 28 questions in 2 hours
  • SIG – Limited journeyman sign electrician – 28 questions in 2 hours
  • ST – Limited journeyman stage electrician – 52 questions in 3 hours
  • BME – Limited building maintenance electrician – 28 questions in 2 hours
• Passing rate – 75%

License Renewal

Your license will expire after 3 years.

To renew, you must submit the following:

• Completed license renewal online application
• Proof of completing the required hours of approved continuing education courses
  • S – General supervising electrician – 24 CE hours
  • J – General journeyman electrician – 24 CE hours
  • PS – Limited supervising electrician – 24 CE hours
  • PJ – Limited journeyman manufacturing plant electrician – 16 CE hours
  • LME – Limited maintenance electrician – 8 CE hours
  • LR – Limited residential electrician – 16 CE hours
  • LEA – Limited energy technician, Class A – 8 CE hours
  • LEB – Limited energy technician, Class B – 8 CE hours
  • LRT – Limited renewable energy technician – 4 CE hours
  • SIG – Limited journeyman sign electrician – 4 CE hours
• Applicable renewal fee

ST and BME are exempt from the CE requirement.

How to Become an Independent Electrical Contractor in Oregon

The Construction Contractors Board regulates and licenses electrical contractors.

They have listed the steps to acquiring the CCB license on their website that you should check out.

After getting the CCB license, you can now submit a contractor/business license application to the Building Codes Division.

To apply for it, you must submit the following:

• Completed contractor/business license application
• License fee for electrical contractor – $375
• Designated a signing supervisor, who must be a licensed S – General supervising electrician

Electrical Training Programs and Schools in Oregon

As an aspiring electrician, you need to have proper education and training in the trade.

You can obtain this by enrolling in accredited vocational schools or sponsored apprenticeship programs.

Both will provide you with hands-on training and classroom instruction, along with real-world on-the-job experience.

The table below lists some of the schools and associations offering electrical programs that you can check out.

Electrician Schools by City

• Portland2 Schools

This page is also available in Spanish.