# Maintenance Electrician Interview & Hands on Test



## ddouget1 (Dec 1, 2013)

Hello,

I'm going to be interviewing for a Maintenance Electrician position at Citgo on Monday, and I'm trying to get an idea of what to expect. I haven't had a lot of experience since I graduated from college, so I was wondering if anyone could help me with ideas about what kind of questions I will be asked in the panel interview, and maybe what to expect in the "hands-on" test that follows given that I pass the interview. Any kind of help will be much appreciated. I've looked at the job description and brushed up on ac/dc theory, ohm's law, kirchoff's law, reading schematics, etc., but I don't want it all to be in vain, if it's a lot simpler than what I'm expecting. I appreciate any and all help given.

Thanks,

Ddouget


----------



## Chris1971 (Dec 27, 2010)

It may ultimately come down to how good of a troubleshooter you are. Best of luck. Keep us posted.


----------



## RFguy (Sep 11, 2013)

If they ask you what you like most about your job, try to avoid saying coffee and lunch breaks.


----------



## dthurmond (Feb 7, 2011)

All the test I have taken always have a few serie / parallel circuits with resistors . Batteries hooked in different configurations and you have to figure out the right voltage . Draw out a start stop circuit for a motor starter . 
The one we use at work shows a basic light circuit with a switch and fuse . It has a meter at different points and you have to put what the meter should read . It's pretty simple but a lot of people have trouble with it .


----------



## lefleuron (May 22, 2010)

It is going to depend upon what they expect of you, and what kind of person they are looking for.

If they are looking for a "regular" (I guess thats a way to say it) maintenance electrician, they expect you to run conduit, hang lights, relay troubleshoot...basic stuff.

The hands on could be as simple as start/stop, prints reading.

But it can also range to doing board level troubleshooting on a simple single layer board (timed), to starting from nothing and getting on-line with their favorite flavor of PLC (setting up drivers, etc).

It really depends.

One "kind of" good way to know, is what they pay. 20-30, pretty basic.

More then that, and they are expecting a lot, or looking for someone with 
specialty training in an area they are weak. (motion control with G+L for instance).

Either way, good luck.


----------



## ddouget1 (Dec 1, 2013)

*Thanks*

Thank you all for the help. I appreciate it. The position is paying around $36/hr, so I would guess that's around the area for someone "basic". Which is good with me since this will be my first position where I can actually use my degree. I'll do some more brushing up on PLC's and drawing my diagrams. >.< Sucks I've been out of college and out of my degree just long enough to forget everything. I will keep you posted on how it goes.


----------



## dronai (Apr 11, 2011)

ddouget1 said:


> Thank you all for the help. I appreciate it. The position is paying around $36/hr, so I would guess that's around the area for someone "basic". Which is good with me since this will be my first position where I can actually use my degree. I'll do some more brushing up on PLC's and drawing my diagrams. >.< Sucks I've been out of college and out of my degree just long enough to forget everything. I will keep you posted on how it goes.


 
Did you get a college degree in Engineering ? 

2 year or 4 year ?


----------



## Semi-Ret Electrician (Nov 10, 2011)

Don't forget to stress safety, LOTO, teamwork, etc.

When asked (and you will be asked) DONT badmouth your last boss or job.


----------



## ddouget1 (Dec 1, 2013)

dronai said:


> Did you get a college degree in Engineering ?
> 
> 2 year or 4 year ?



I got a 4 year degree in Electronic Engineering Technology


----------



## btharmy (Jan 17, 2009)

ddouget1 said:


> I got a 4 year degree in Electronic Engineering Technology


Somehow, I don't think this job is what you think it is. For your sake I hope I'm wrong.


----------



## Semi-Ret Electrician (Nov 10, 2011)

ddouget1 said:


> I got a 4 year degree in Electronic Engineering Technology


Then 4 more years as an electrician might be just what you need, just like a military officer who started out as an enlisted man.

They're called "mustangs" and are very respected.:thumbsup:


----------



## sparky970 (Mar 19, 2008)

A maintenance electrician job is going to be entirely different than what your schooling provided.


----------



## CraigV (May 12, 2011)

I'm hoping that after four years in college a graduate has some idea of the kind of work he can get. But if not, I wouldn't be surprised. Most Colleges don't prepare their students for the real world.


----------



## dronai (Apr 11, 2011)

sparky970 said:


> A maintenance electrician job is going to be entirely different than what your schooling provided.


 My education had me crunching numbers, and my experience had me on my knees changing V Belts while breathing conveyor dust. :laughing:


----------



## Calebxx12 (Oct 11, 2010)

ddouget1 said:


> Thank you all for the help. I appreciate it. The position is paying around $36/hr, so I would guess that's around the area for someone "basic". Which is good with me since this will be my first position where I can actually use my degree. I'll do some more brushing up on PLC's and drawing my diagrams. >.< Sucks I've been out of college and out of my degree just long enough to forget everything. I will keep you posted on how it goes.


I wish I got paid $36 an hour for being "basic"


----------



## sparky970 (Mar 19, 2008)

dronai said:


> My education had me crunching numbers, and my experience had me on my knees changing V Belts while breathing conveyor dust. :laughing:


Do you know how to use a meter? Can you at least draw a 3-wire motor control diagram? Do you know how to reverse the rotation of a 3-phase motor? If you answered "no" to any of those questions, you got some learning to do.


----------



## ScooterMcGavin (Jan 24, 2011)

Is it purely electrical or instrumentation as well? Around here I&E techs can pretty much write their own ticket. We have an opening and they haven't received one good application yet. All the good techs already have jobs.


----------



## sparky970 (Mar 19, 2008)

scameron81 said:


> Is it purely electrical or instrumentation as well? Around here I&E techs can pretty much write their own ticket. We have an opening and they haven't received one good application yet. All the good techs already have jobs.


Where in Cali?


----------



## dthurmond (Feb 7, 2011)

We had three people retire in 2010 and still don't have qualified replacements . We are training two people straight out if tech school but its takes awhile to learn the hands on no matter the amount of school you have .


----------



## gesparky221 (Nov 30, 2007)

When we conduct the interview, the HR dept screens them first, then if they get thru that, the electricians get to interview, we always ask to explain sinking and sourcing inputs and outputs. Most people have no skills with our PLC's so we ask general PLC questions.


----------

