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Home / HVAC Technicians / New Mexico / Apprenticeships

HVAC Technician apprenticeships in New Mexico

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

Find a program near you

Enter your ZIP to sort by distance.

Type

2 programs

  1. Albuquerque Plumbing Heating & Cooling Inc.

    Albuquerque · Bernalillo County

    Open shop

  2. Sheet Metal Workers Lu 49 JATC

    Albuquerque · Bernalillo County

    Union

Union locals and training centers in New Mexico

Call the local or its training center for the next application date.

SMART union locals

Sheet metal training centers

PHCC chapters (heating, cooling, plumbing)

No PHCC chapter lists an office in New Mexico. ACCA member contractors near you

Pipefitters and HVAC service techs also apprentice through the UA: UA locals in New Mexico.

Union or open shop?

Union

Run by a joint committee of the SMART sheet metal local or the UA pipefitters local and union contractors. 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 ACCA or PHCC chapters, ABC or a single HVAC 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, 7 schools in New Mexico have HVAC technician programs.

The license steps in New Mexico

How do you get into an HVAC technician 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 HVAC technician 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 HVAC technicians in New Mexico earned $17.97 an hour or less in May 2025.

HVAC Technician 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)