HVAC Technician Top Career Mistakes

Working Toward A College Degree

A college degree is a desirable credential in many fields. However, the HVAC field is very specialized and generally requires in-depth technical training. The additional courses to fulfill degree requirements are not needed and only serve to increase your educational costs and student loan debt. Spending the time actually learning the finer points of HVAC systems is a much more direct way to increase your knowledge and experience in this field.

Relying on On-the-Job-Training

Although many HVAC technicians learned from experienced business owners in the past, this system is no longer reliable for learning the specialized work that good technicians need to make a good income in the field. Good training at an air conditioning school teaches you the skills you need to take an HVAC position immediately while avoiding those long periods of treading water while you wait to be taught necessary skills.

Delaying Certification and Licensing

If an HVAC worker finds a great deal of work in the early stages of a career, it is tempting to put off getting further certification and licensing, but this can become a handicap when the market flattens or new competition enters the area. Work on becoming certified in the field so that employers and customers can rely on your skills, and you will have proof that you are a valuable commodity.

Limiting Your Areas of Expertise

Due to the nature of HVAC work, it can be easy to fall into a routine of working in one area of the field, such as residential equipment repair or installation, and fail to explore other areas of HVAC that could help to advance their careers. Learning to work on industrial and commercial systems expands your career possibilities and can assure a long career in the field. HVAC training at an air conditioning school can help to increase your knowledge of these areas.

Being Unwilling To Re-Locate

Another problem that can beset HVAC technicians is living in an area that is saturated with HVAC companies and workers. This circumstance can hinder chances for employment for someone just graduating from an HVAC program when employers can choose from a pool of applicants that already have years of experience. Willingness to move to an area where fewer applicants have completed air-conditioning school can help increase the chances for acquiring a position.

Receive more HVAC career advice from The Refrigeration School’s career services department while enrolled as a student in the Refrigeration Technologies program.