Most skilled occupations in the United States are licensed at the state level, not the federal level. That means the requirements to work as an electrician, a food handler, a barber, or a real-estate agent are set by a state board or agency — and they differ, sometimes dramatically, from one state to the next.
The pieces that make up a license
Nearly every occupational license is built from the same handful of components. LicensingAtlas documents each one, per occupation, per state:
- Issuing board or agency — the government body that grants the license and publishes the rules.
- License types / levels — many trades have tiers (for example, apprentice → journeyman → master electrician), each with its own path.
- Requirements — experience or training hours, education, age, and background checks.
- Exam — whether one is required, who administers it, and the passing score.
- Fees — application, exam, and license fees.
- Renewal cycle & continuing education (CE) — how often you renew and how many CE hours are required.
- Reciprocity — whether a license from another state can transfer.
Why “it depends on your state” is the honest answer
Because each state writes its own rules, a single national “how to get licensed” answer is usually wrong. A journeyman electrician license might require 8,000 hours of on-the-job training in one state and a different threshold in another. That state-by-state variation is exactly what this atlas exists to map — accurately, with the official source named on every page.
What LicensingAtlas is — and is not
We explain official requirements. When meeting a requirement involves a course or exam-prep provider, we may link one as a step, with disclosure — but we never rank or review courses, and we never tell you which credential you should pursue. See our methodology for how every fact gets verified.