How to become an electrician in North Dakota

The path in North Dakota, step by step

North Dakota licenses electrical work at the state level through the North Dakota State Electrical Board. These are the steps it lays out, in order.

1. Register as an apprentice and complete 8,000 hours and apprentice training.
2. Pass the journeyman exam and work at least one year as a licensed journeyman.
3. Send the master exam application and employment verification to the board.
4. Take the exam within six months of your invite and score 70 percent or more.
5. Choose contracting master status and file proof of $500,000 liability insurance.
6. Get a North Dakota contractor license from the Secretary of State, then renew yearly with eight hours of CE.

The full license guide, with every fee and form: electrical license in North Dakota.

Finding an apprenticeship in North Dakota

North Dakota has no recognized State Apprenticeship Agency, so the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Apprenticeship registers and oversees programs there through a state field office. Apprenticeship.gov lists the North Dakota Apprenticeship Office as the contact.

Either way, a registered program means paid work with a mentor, raises as you progress, classroom instruction and a credential recognized in every state. Search open spots in the Apprenticeship Job Finder.

Across the country. Most electricians learn the trade in a 4 or 5 year apprenticeship. Each year brings about 2,000 hours of paid on-the-job training plus some classroom instruction.

License levels and exams in North Dakota

The license to aim for: Master Electrician (Contracting Master).

Trade exam. Yes. The exam covers basic electricity, North Dakota laws and wiring standards, and the National Electrical Code. Passing grade is 70 percent. The master exam has a closed part (1 hour) and an open part (3.5 hours).

Keeping it. Every year. Master licenses expire April 30 and journeyman licenses March 31. You need eight hours of continuing education, four of them on the code.

Coming from another state. Master license reciprocity with Iowa, Minnesota and South Dakota. Journeyman reciprocity with several more states.

What the North Dakota license costs

The fees the North Dakota State Electrical Board lists. Exam fees from a testing company, insurance and any bond come on top.

What electricians earn in North Dakota

The median electrician in North Dakota earned $31.59 an hour in May 2025, 24th of 51 states, with 3,570 on payrolls. The national median was $30.38.

At the bottom of the range, a quarter of electricians in North Dakota earned under $27.36 an hour and a tenth under $22.33. At the top, a quarter earned over $38.71 and a tenth over $48.57.

Every state, the neighbors and what a business should charge: electrician salary in North Dakota.

Jobs ahead in North Dakota

North Dakota's labor market office projects jobs for electricians growing from 3,030 in 2022 to 3,500 in 2032, a change of 15.5%. Counting people who retire or change careers, that is about 330 openings a year.

Jobs are projected to grow 15.5% from 2022 to 2032, faster than the 6.5% projected nationally, ranking 14th of the 50 states in the file.

These are the state's own long-term projections, published together on Projections Central for the occupation group electricians.

Starting your own electrician business in North Dakota

To contract on your own in North Dakota, the license is the Master Electrician (Contracting Master).

Insurance. A licensee acting as a contractor must file proof of public liability insurance with limits of at least $500,000.

Pricing comes next. Paying yourself the North Dakota median of $31.59 an hour, the labor rate calculator's starting numbers (one person, 2 unbilled hours a day, $90,000 of overhead, 15% profit) come to $126.07 per billable hour. Try your own in the electrician labor rate calculator.

The full checklist is in how to start an electrical business. The free Koira Office plan gives you a website on a Koira address, estimates customers sign with a deposit, invoices with card payments and your day's jobs in one place, with no per-person fee. See the plans.