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Home / Electricians / New Mexico / Apprenticeships

Electrician apprenticeships in New Mexico

New Mexico has 5 registered electrician apprenticeship programs: 2 union and 3 open shop.1 Apprentices are hired and paid while they learn.

Find a program near you

Enter your ZIP to sort by distance. Lineman, utility and studio programs are hidden because they lead to a different license.

Type

5 programs

  1. Central N.M. Electric Cooperative

    Moriarty · Torrance County

    Open shopLineman or utility

  2. Continental Divide Electric Cooperative Apprenticeship Program

    Grants · Cibola County

    Open shopLineman or utility

  3. Independent Electrical Contractors Inc. Southern New Mexico Chapter

    Las Cruces · Doña Ana County

    Open shop

  4. JATC For The Electrical Industry

    Albuquerque · Bernalillo County

    Union

  5. Kit Carson Electric Cooperative Inc

    Taos · Taos County

    Open shopLineman or utility

  6. L-E Electric, Inc.

    Las Cruces · Doña Ana County

    Open shop

  7. National Electrical Joint Apprenticeship Training Comm.

    Albuquerque · Bernalillo County

    Union

  8. Northern New Mexico Independent Electrical Contractors

    Albuquerque · Bernalillo County

    Open shop

  9. Springer Electric Cooperative INC.

    Springer · Colfax County

    Open shopLineman or utility

Union or open shop?

Union

Run by a JATC run jointly by the IBEW local and the NECA contractors' chapter. You apply to the committee, take an aptitude test and an interview, and wait on a ranked list. The committee sends you to its contractors.

Pay is a set share of the union journey-level rate and steps up on a schedule. Classes are nights or week-long blocks, usually paid for by the program.

Open shop

Run by ABC, IEC or a single electrical contractor. You usually get hired by a member contractor first, and the contractor enrolls you.

Your employer sets the pay and the raises. Classes are nights or weekends, and some programs charge tuition.

What do programs ask for?

Applying this month

  1. Get your papers together1 week

    High school transcript or GED, a photo ID, and your birth certificate or proof of age. Programs that ask for algebra want the transcript that shows it.

    Time
    1 week
  2. Practice for the aptitude test2 to 4 weeks

    Union programs test algebra and reading. A few evenings with a practice test helps your ranking.

    Time
    2 to 4 weeks
  3. Pick three programs and check their dates1 evening

    Union programs take applications in set windows, some once a year. Open-shop programs and employer programs often take them year-round.

    Time
    1 evening
    Back to the program list
  4. Apply, then keep working

    Apply to all three. While you wait, a helper or trainee job with a licensed contractor gives you hours and a reference.

    The license steps

Can't get in yet?

Pre-apprenticeship

Short programs, often free, that teach the basics and help with the application. Ask the programs above which ones they take graduates from.

Start on a crew

Licensed contractors hire helpers with no experience. Keep a log of your hours and employers; many programs and license boards count them. If you'd rather learn the basics first, 8 schools in New Mexico have electrician programs.

The license steps in New Mexico

How do you get into an electrician apprenticeship in New Mexico?

Pick programs near you, check each one's website for its application dates, and apply to more than one. Union programs test and interview, then rank applicants; open-shop programs usually start once a member contractor hires you.

How much do electrician apprentices make in New Mexico?

Programs set their own scales, usually a share of journey-level pay that rises every year. For a floor, the lowest-paid tenth of all electricians in New Mexico earned $17.62 an hour or less in May 2025.

Electrician pay in New Mexico

Other routes in New Mexico

Sources

  1. U.S. Department of Labor, apprenticeship.gov registered apprenticeship partners (apprenticeship.gov)
  2. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, New Mexico, May 2025 (bls.gov, May 2025)