NECA Student Chapter at N.I.U.
NECA works closely with colleges, universities and student organizations whose purposes are to encourage students to pursue a career in the electrical contracting industry. With a student body comprised of residents from throughout northeastern Illinois and beyond,a partnerhip with Northern Illinois University (N.I.U.) to assist students interested in electrical construction makes perfect sense. NECA worked hand in hand with N.I.U. to establish scholarships and has facilitated the establishment of the NECA Student Chapter at this venerable educational institution. The N.I.U. NECA Student Chapter was chartered by NECA on June 5, 2003
Electrical construction is a broad and ever-evolving industry and an excellent career choice for electrical engineers, construction professionals and business managers. NECA student chapters have access to design competitions, conferences, mentoring and internship opportunities, and scholarships. Student Chapter members may receive pertinent industry publications such as, regular mailings of NECA’s magazine (Electrical Contractor), electronic newsletter (NECA News) and Chapter Alert.
Members of the Student Chapter are invited to attend NECA’s annual convention each year, which is also when the Student Chapter Annual Summit takes place. Since NECA Member Electrical Contractors are constantly in need of qualified, well-educated project managers, estimators and other professionally prepared personnel; the Convention presents a unique opportunity for students to engage in networking, attend informative panels and speaker presentations. Of course, the Convention also provides a great opportunity for students to talk to contractors directly about internships and full time positions after graduation.
One of the premier competitions for Students who are interested in the electrical industry is the Green Energy Challenge. Student teams studying electrical construction, engineering, design and management enter into competition by preparing a project according to specifications. For instance, students may be asked to perform an "energy audit" of a local K-12 school. In the competition, students develop and submit customized proposals based on their findings for energy retrofits that would improve the targeted facility’s energy efficiency. Teams may also be asked to design green energy applications such as a new solar PV and/or wind energy system for the facility. The winner of the exciting Green Energy Challenge is announced each year at the Student Chapter Summit.