HeatSpring Gets High Marks for Students Taking the NABCEP Associate Exam Lisa Cohn Over the past 12 months, 98% of the HeatSpring students who have taken the NABCEP PV Associate exam have passed it. HeatSpring instructor Sean White teaches the students how to prepare for the exam with his course, Solar PV Installer Boot Camp and NABCEP PV Associate Exam Prep. White was the 2014 Interstate Renewable Energy Council Trainer of the Year and is author of four books about solar energy, including one that is the industry standard for preparing for this exam. A Guarantee that Students Will Pass on Their First Try HeatSpring guarantees that students will pass the PV Associate exam on their first try. If they don’t, the company will refund the exam fee or allow them to try again at no charge. The NABCEP PV Associate exam is easier to take than ever. The exam can now be taken at home via Live Online Proctoring on your own computer or you can take it any of the 1,350 Scantron testing centers worldwide. “It’s a beginner course for people who just want to pass the exam and learn the basics,” says White. Too often, people in the industry–whether they’re installers, secretaries or CEOs–don’t understand even the basics about solar energy, says White. That’s why the course is important. One student agreed in a review of the course. Take the Class, Open Your Eyes “This course is truly the comprehensive ‘Intro to PV’ class. Stop acting like you know PV because someone taught you how to size a net metering system! Take this class now and open your eyes!” he said. Another of White’s courses, the 40-hour Advanced Solar PV Training, covers solar PV in a more in-depth manner. The course provides 40 hours of advanced training needed for the NABCEP PV Installation Professional Certification Exam, and also hours for other NABCEP PV certification exams. While HeatSpring doesn’t have any specific statistics about the passing rate for the more difficult PV installation professional exam, it appears that about 50% of students pass it worldwide. HeatSpring Gives Students a Leg Up on Passing PV Professional Exam “I’d say anecdotally from the feedback from past students that our courses have helped a lot of people get a leg up on passing the PV Installation Professional exam, but we don’t have any hard data on that exam–the way we do with the PV associate exam,” says Duncan Miller, co-founder of HeatSpring. In the bootcamp course, students learn interesting facts about the history of solar. For example, in 1839, French physicist Edmond Becquerel discovered the photovoltaic effect, which is the main operating principle of a solar cell. At the time, it had no practical applications, says White. Albert Einstein Won Nobel Prize for Photoelectric Studies In 1921, Albert Einstein was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for his studies of theoretical physics and especially the law of the photoelectric effect. In 1954, Bell Labs developed a silicon-based solar cell which was used for remote telecommunications sites and other applications. Changing the World with Solar “Bell Labs thought it would change the world then, but (solar is) actually changing the world right now while you’re taking this class,” says White in one of his videos for the bootcamp course. For people who aim to change the world with solar energy, White’s Solar PV Installer Boot Camp is a good place to start. Now is the time when doing the right thing is also doing the profitable thing. Certification Solar Business Growth Solar Design & Installation Solar Sales & Marketing Originally posted on June 10, 2020 Written by Lisa Cohn Lisa Cohn, a regular contributor at HeatSpring Magazine, has worked as a writer for more than 20 years, focusing on energy and environment. She is a former U.S. stringer for Windpower Monthly Magazine, a former associate editor of Oregon Business and a former editor of Forest Perspectives, a quarterly magazine published by the World Forestry Center. She began her writing career as an energy and environment reporter for The Cape Cod Times. Lisa has received numerous writing awards, from the Pacific Northwest Writers Association, Willamette Writers and Associated Oregon Industries. More posts by Lisa
What’s the Difference Between the NABCEP PV Installation Professional and Installer Specialist Certifications?
Getting Your NABCEP PV Commissioning & Maintenance Specialist Certification | Everything You Need to Know