Northwest Lineman College announced for North Carolina

The program trains lineman in the utility industry

An exciting recent announcement made by Northwest Lineman College will add additional hands-on training and certification for the Southeastern United States utility industry.

Northwest Lineman College (NLC), a leader in providing in the training for power line professional entering the field, has announced a 5th campus will be created in North Carolina. This campus will complement NLC current offerings in California, Idaho, Texas, and Florida.

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics recently estimated that over 23,000 openings will be increasing year over year during the next decade. Most of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire. The line trade is particularly taxing on the body and requires an extremely high level of attention to detail, electrical knowledge, and safety protocol.

Founded in 1992, NLC has seen consistent growth of the past decades. Its most recent campus expansion was in 2016 in Edgewater, Florida. The initial class was 30 students and seen continued growth since.

The Northwest Lineman College program curriculum is highly regarded across the industry. The 15-week course focuses education around three domains of learning: Knowledge, Skill and Behavior. Aspiring linemen learn to operate bucket trucks and digger derricks as well as learn how to work in elevated positions, using the industry's most up-to-date safety equipment.

Lineman training in the Carolinas

The new Carolina campus is expected to have both indoor and outdoor training facilities. This will follow the model of other campuses across the country. The NLC California campus includes a large indoor lab with four classroom, an administrative space as well as 18 acres of training field.

Many of the graduates of the Northwest Lineman College have gone on to accept positions for Entergy, Alliant Energy, Duke Energy, Dominion, and many others.

Annual enrollment for the North Carolina facility is estimated to over 1,000 students at full capacity.

In the past year, Lineman Central has reported that Northwest Lineman College receives approximately 10-15 aspiring new potential lineman across its current five campuses each week. This places this program in the alongside comparable lineman training program like Sacramento Power Academy and Southeast Lineman Training Center.

The Florida Campus had a 2020 total enrollment of 1,225.

Preparing Lineman for jobs of the Future

Another route that can sometimes be complimentary to a traditional climb school is an NJATC apprenticeship program. These apprenticeship programs are competitive and often require past groundwork or line school experience.

Graduates of the Northwest Lineman College are often at an advantage for these competitive apprenticeships as they complete the programming with first aid certification, CPR, climbing and metering certifications. Collectively their campuses are known for being some of the top training opportunities for aspiring linemen.

Breaking ground of the North Carolina campus is expected to occur in 2022.

About Lineman Central: Lineman Central is the leading portal for connecting with lineman apprenticeship programs, technical schools and all things lineman career related. The free services started by powerline professionals help the aspiring next generation of those interest in the power line trade begin their career journey today.

About Northwest Lineman College: Northwest Lineman College (NLC) is an educational institution that provides safety and certification training in the power delivery, natural gas, and telecommunications industries. NLC offers complete solutions from pre-apprentice to advanced training and has remained committed to doing what’s best for the student for more than 25 years. Since 1993, NLC has grown to over 300 employees with 4 campus locations across the United States.