Plumbing Programs | Westmoreland County Community College, Youngwood, Pennsylvania

Gain In-depth Skills in the Plumbing Industry

Plumbing

Why choose Plumbing as a career?

The Plumbing, AAS program provides students with an in-depth background of the plumbing industry. By combining theory and practical shop experiences, students will develop the skills needed for design, installation, maintenance, and troubleshooting plumbing systems for residential and commercial applications. Successful completion of this program leads to the associate of applied science degree.

The Plumbing program also has certificate and diploma options. The plumbing certification is intended to be one semester and consists of 16 credits. The plumbing diploma can be completed in two semesters and consists of 31 credits.  

What Will I Learn?

The plumbing, AAS degree is designed to prepare students for entry-level positions in the plumbing field. Students learn the tools used in the industry, the meaning of quality customer service, design a plumbing design to standards, and perform plumbing tasks. Students will install and service water-based heating and cooling systems, and residential and commercial water supply and waste systems.

Students will learn skills such as installing faucets, drains, waste and vent systems, water heaters, copper pipe and fittings and more. In addition, students will develop the necessary skills to identify different types of venting systems and methods for locating buried water and sewer lines.

What Will I Earn?

If you plan to stay in the region, there are many occupations related to this program degree and certificates. In the 10-county region* surrounding Westmoreland County Community College, the earnings for occupations in this field range from $21.98 - $54.37 per hour, with an average hourly wage of $36.54. 

It is important to remember that wages vary based on level of education, experience, job location and other factors. 

Source: Data provided by Lightcast™ (https://lightcast.io/) 2023.1

* 10-county region includes Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Washington and Westmoreland.

Career Opportunities

Graduates of the Plumbing program can obtain jobs with the following titles: sprinkler fitter, pipe fitter, steamfitter, master plumber, plumbing apprentice, service plumber, residential plumber and plumber gasfitter.

Support

Funding provided by the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, the Pennsylvania Department of Education and a donation from Carpenter Technology.