Safety
Plan the task, identify hazards, use proper PPE, verify conditions, and follow the controlling procedure.
APPRENTICESHIP ROADMAP
FREE ORIGINAL GUIDE
NJATC curriculum
study roadmap.
A practical five-year roadmap for inside-wireman apprentices, connecting classroom theory, code navigation, calculations, hands-on labs, and on-the-job learning.
EVERY YEAR
Five habits that build a wireman
Code navigation
Learn where to find the rule, read its scope, follow references, and check definitions and exceptions.
Trade math
Write known values, select the formula, keep units visible, calculate, and check whether the answer is reasonable.
Craftsmanship
Measure carefully, protect materials, install neatly, torque correctly, test safely, and leave useful documentation.
Professionalism
Show up prepared, communicate clearly, accept correction, protect the crew, and take responsibility for the work.
Foundations of the trade
Build safe habits and learn the language used in class and in the field.
Classroom focus
- Basic electrical theory: voltage, current, resistance, and power
- Ohm’s Law and Watt’s Law
- Series and parallel circuits
- Basic construction math, fractions, decimals, and measurement
- NEC organization, definitions, and general requirements
- Tools, materials, conductors, boxes, raceways, and fittings
Lab & field focus
- Tool inspection and safe use
- Measuring, layout, drilling, fastening, and supports
- Basic conductor preparation and terminations
- Device boxes, receptacles, switches, and lighting
- Ladder use, housekeeping, PPE, and test-before-touch awareness
Be able to explain
- The difference between voltage and current
- Why current changes in series and parallel circuits
- How to calculate power
- How to locate a defined NEC term
- Why an equipment grounding path matters
First-year self-check
- Calculate current when 120 V is applied across 24 Ω.
- Draw a simple series circuit and label voltage, current, and resistance.
- Identify the purpose of a grounded conductor and an equipment grounding conductor.
- Find the NEC article covering boxes and the article covering raceways used in class.
- Describe your safe setup before using a portable power tool.
Wiring methods & branch circuits
Turn theory into accurate installations and calculations.
Classroom focus
- Branch-circuit requirements and overcurrent protection
- Conductor ampacity, insulation, and terminal temperature
- Box fill and raceway fill
- Voltage drop fundamentals
- Grounding and bonding fundamentals
- Blueprint symbols and elementary diagrams
Lab & field focus
- EMT stubs, offsets, saddles, and parallel bends
- Raceway support, protection, and routing
- Conductor pulling, identification, splicing, and termination
- Single-pole, 3-way, and 4-way switching
- Reading plans and laying out branch circuits
Be able to explain
- Which items count toward box fill
- Why conductor ampacity and breaker size are not always identical
- How bend angle changes offset spacing and shrink
- The difference between grounding and bonding
- How a 3-way switching circuit operates
Second-year self-check
- List every value needed before completing a box-fill calculation.
- Lay out a 6-inch offset using the selected bend angle and multiplier.
- Explain how ambient temperature and conductor count may change ampacity.
- Trace the current path through a 3-way lighting circuit.
- Use a plan to produce a basic material takeoff.
Motors, controls & transformers
Learn how electrical power is transformed, controlled, and converted into work.
Classroom focus
- Magnetism, inductance, and AC relationships
- Single-phase and three-phase systems
- Transformer ratios, kVA, current, and protection
- Motor theory, nameplates, tables, and branch-circuit rules
- Relays, contactors, overloads, starters, and control diagrams
- Basic troubleshooting logic
Lab & field focus
- Transformer connections and voltage checks
- Motor starter wiring and control stations
- Seal-in, interlock, reversing, and timer circuits
- Reading ladder diagrams from left to right
- Safe meter selection and systematic testing
Be able to explain
- Wye and delta voltage relationships
- Why motor conductors, overloads, and short-circuit protection use different rules
- How a control transformer supplies a starter circuit
- What happens when a seal-in contact opens
- How to divide a circuit during troubleshooting
Third-year self-check
- Calculate secondary current for a 45 kVA, 208 V, three-phase transformer.
- Identify the correct source for motor full-load current in a sizing problem.
- Draw a basic three-wire start-stop control circuit.
- Explain the purpose of overload protection.
- Describe a safe troubleshooting sequence for a starter that will not hold in.
Advanced & special systems
Connect power distribution with life safety, communications, and automation.
Classroom focus
- Services, feeders, grounding electrodes, and bonding
- Emergency, legally required, and optional standby systems
- Fire alarm, signaling, and communications pathways
- Hazardous locations and special occupancies
- PLC fundamentals, sensors, outputs, and ladder logic
- Variable-frequency drives and electronic controls
Lab & field focus
- One-lines, risers, specifications, and equipment schedules
- Fire alarm device circuits and interface awareness
- PLC input-logic-output exercises
- VFD terminations and basic parameter concepts
- Grounding and bonding installation checks
Be able to explain
- How separately derived systems are grounded and bonded
- How emergency and optional standby systems differ
- Why fire alarm pathways require supervision
- How a PLC scan connects inputs, logic, and outputs
- How a VFD changes motor speed
Fourth-year self-check
- Trace the effective ground-fault current path for a separately derived system.
- Compare three categories of standby power systems.
- Identify initiating, notification, and supervisory fire alarm functions.
- Write simple PLC logic for a maintained output with a stop condition.
- Use a one-line diagram to identify the power path from service to load.
Journeyman readiness & leadership
Bring code, calculations, planning, and field judgment together.
Classroom focus
- Service, feeder, and load calculations
- Advanced motor and transformer calculations
- Fault-current and coordination awareness
- Blueprint reading, estimating, and project documentation
- Code-review strategy and timed navigation
- Supervision, communication, and professional responsibility
Lab & field focus
- Planning labor, material, equipment, and work sequence
- Directing safe daily work and pre-task planning
- Quality-control checks and inspection preparation
- Troubleshooting from symptoms to verified cause
- Clear documentation of testing and corrections
Be able to explain
- How to plan work before assigning tasks
- How to verify a completed installation
- How to communicate a scope or safety change
- How to train an apprentice without skipping safety
- How to find and defend a code answer
Fifth-year self-check
- Complete a timed service or feeder calculation and cite each rule used.
- Build a safe troubleshooting plan for an unknown equipment failure.
- Prepare a material-and-labor plan from a drawing and specification.
- Explain how you would correct unsafe work while protecting the crew.
- Teach a first-year apprentice one task using a clear demonstration and verification.
WEEKLY STUDY SYSTEM
Read it. Find it. Work it. Explain it.
- Preview: Scan the lesson objectives before class.
- Locate: Find every assigned code reference yourself.
- Practice: Work problems without looking at the answer.
- Correct: Write why each missed answer was wrong.
- Teach: Explain the lesson aloud in plain language.
- Connect: Identify where the lesson appears on the job.