National Grid partners with community colleges across our Upstate New York and New England service area to offer students a unique opportunity: to participate in certificate programs that prepare them to work in the energy industry. Courses vary in number of weeks, credits offered and disciplines (with classes ranging from electric overhead line work, to electric generation, to gas utility work and more, depending on the college). But all share a common goal: to help students gain the skills they need to work at an energy utility, and for energy utilities to fill their critical need for qualified entry level workers. And they all offer students a unique opportunity to gain a broad range of knowledge and experience about the energy business, the science and the work through a blend of classroom and hands-on laboratory projects.