If you want to learn how to build fine structures out of brick, marble,
plastic and stone, consider a masonry program.
Masons generally begin with an apprenticeship, which combines on-the-job
experience with technical training to produce a certified journeyperson. Upon
completion, apprentices receive a certificate of qualification.
Most stonemasons and bricklayers still obtain their skills informally.
However, apprenticeships provide more thorough training and are the key to
better paying jobs. They call for three years of on-the-job training plus
a minimum 144 hours of classroom instruction each year.
Apprentices start out earning a percentage of journeyperson wages. As they
learn, their wages increase.
According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, apprentices usually
start by carrying materials, mixing mortar and building scaffolding. Next,
they learn to lay, align and join brick and block.
The International Masonry Institute (IMI) is a labor/management trust of
the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers. It offers
apprenticeship programs of three to five years.
Completion of a pre-job or pre-apprenticeship program may be a prerequisite
with some unions. Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College (WITC), for instance,
offers a one-year program.
Ideally, students who complete the program will pursue an apprenticeship.
But there is a place for those who don't, says WITC instructor Todd Larson.
"The college is located in a rural area and there are contractors, small construction
outfits in the residential market who need people with the kind of masonry
skills our students have," he says.
First, finish high school. In the U.S., applicants have to be at
least 17 years old if they aren't high school graduates.
Applicants should be physically fit, able to lift 50 to 75 pounds repeatedly
and prepared to work outdoors for long periods of time. They must have good
hand-eye coordination and strong planning and decision-making skills. They
need to be competent at math and able to read blueprints and drawings.
In high school, take math, English and applied science classes.
"Math is always a problem for us," says Gint Tromposch, a bricklaying instructor
at a technical college. "Some of the students really have to struggle through
the basic math classes in our program."
Consider high school drafting and blueprinting classes and art courses.
"Artistic ability is a great asset," says Tromposch. "When you're working
with brick and tile, it helps to have an eye for color and shape. A lot of
the work you'll end up doing is decorative, like fireplaces and arches."
You may have to pay for a toolkit, safety boots and appropriate clothing.
Links
Occupational Outlook Handbook
For more information related to this field of study, see: Masonry
Workers
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