The Solar Workforce Landscape
The Solar Workforce in California is rated the #1 state for solar jobs with over 10% job growth year-over-year. There are roughly 80,000 jobs in solar in California with over 265,000 nationwide (IREC).
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has identified multiple types of occupations required to support the growing solar industry, including scientific research, solar power engineering, manufacturing for solar power, solar power plant development, solar power plant construction, solar power plant operations, solar photovoltaic installers, other solar panel installation and maintenance, as well as various support occupations.
Workforce & Professional Development
UC Merced Professional and Continuing Education (PACE) is committed to providing quality workforce development programming to our region and broader state. UC Merced PACE has partnered with the solar industry and world-renowned faculty in the space to bring forward pilot offerings for solar workforce development for careers involving post-installation phases. These offerings include opportunities for upskilling, reskilling, and job training. They are offered in online modalities with the opportunity for corporate, customized training for organizations and companies.
There are many opportunities through PACE in solar workforce and professional development. Additional offerings and opportunities will continue to be launched in the coming months.
In this Solar Analysis & Due Diligence course, you will learn about solar power by following the path of a photon from the sun, through the Earth’s atmosphere, into a solar power system where it’s transformed into electricity and then consumed on the grid. This course will give you an overview of the major components of a solar power system, regulatory incentives, and financing, and provide a primer on energy forecasting and economic modeling.
