How do you become an electrician??????

[anyone8542]

I've been thinking about re-training so i can earn some extra money and also with a view to eventually giving up my day job and trying to make it as an electrician.
I've been researching on the net and have spoken to a few training companies:
www.electricaltraining4u.co.uk
www.olci.info
and www.tradeskills4u.co.uk
but am confused as when i speak to these companies they seam to know what they are talking about but are obviously trying to sell me a course.

The way i see it there are 2 options
1. Domestic installer... 2392-10, 17th edition and Part P http://www.tradeskills4u.co.uk/courses/17-day-electrical-multi-course
2. Fully qualified ie. 2330 (college) or through OLCI http://www.olci.info/electrical-training-courses.html
City & Guilds Level 3 NVQ Diploma in Installing Electrotechnical Systems and Equipment (Buildings, Structures and the Environment) (2357)

Domestic installer would appear to be the quicker route but how much work would i get???
Going fully qualified will take longer and cost more, £5500 to £8000 depending on trainer but as far as i can make out i would still need to do 17th edition and Part P (another £1000 aprox on top)

I'm very confused ca anyone point me in the right direction please??

Thanks.

 

[studentspark]

I posted a similar question on a forum about seven years ago.

Don't think its a way to earn 'extra money'.

It is a commitment that will cost you quite a lot of money to train and get the required equipment.

If you think there is a fast way to do this properly then no.

These £5000 courses will not equip you with the skills needed. AS I say I have been doing this for about seven years and I still feel like a beginner.

Depending on age apprenticeship is the way to go, but if not an option

Go to college do the 2330 (or latest version I believe changes are taking place)
during the course try to get work with an electrician/firm to get the very needed experience that no college course will teach.

Gain qualifications, NVQ3,17th edition....

After a few years of working take the 2391

Take as many courses as possible to increase your skills, fire alarms, security, door entry, renewable

Try to work in commercial / industrial or specialise. Domestic is hard and full of grief

Work experience with a GOOD electrician is vital. I can't stress that enough.

 

[ericmark]

It's not the qualification but the way people perceive your skill. Tell some one I have a degree in electrical engineering they are impressed yet my 2382, 2391 taught me much more about how to do an electricians job.

When I returned home after working abroad people seemed to think I must be really good. But in reality what I had learn working abroad was how to botch things up and keep them running and likely doing the same in UK would mean appearing in court to explain myself.

What skills were really wanted was the ability to write PLC programs and keep the HSE happy and to show that the only way is by doing the job and earning a reputation hopefully a good one.

Most jobs today are through agencies and get a bad report and very soon you run out of options and the only opening left is the house holder looking for a cheap job which of course means low money.

As an apprentice all your work is checked and by time your working on ones own you have some experience so can avoid getting a bad reputation. However trying to pass ones self off as an experienced electrician when in truth you are really an apprentice with no one checking your work for errors can very quickly gain one a bad reputation. As time goes by of course your work will improve but by that time it's too late.

I was lucky it was a sidewards move rather than coming from an unrelated trade and I had a father and father-in-law both in the trade to guide me. And the steep learning curve was in Algeria where very few people could see my mistakes and by time I started working on mains in the UK I had gained a good few years experience.

The most important qualification for working abroad is to have worked abroad as so many people can't stick it and quit leaving companies in the lurch so I got away with things that would make electricians in this country cringe. Cable joints with Denso tape for example.

Most people who are successful in breaking into the trade have had some form of mentor who has guided them. My son followed in my footsteps I wangled him positions as electricians mate, and had him working for me for 6 months. He worked for house bashing firms back before Part P when to be honest again some really shoddy work was done by under paid want to be electricians like my son but this was before minimum wage and firms turned a blind eye to mistakes as they were paying so little.

I am not saying you can't do it but it's a hard climb in first 10 years yes it will take about 10 years to gain a reputation which will allow you to work on the higher paid jobs. Some electricians may well be on £15 to £20 an hour but they will not be newly qualified and unlikely to be working for themselves. There are the Richard Branson's of this would who make it big but even he did not do it first time.

I have loved the life. Algeria, Falklands, Hong Kong, 7 Bridge, Sizewell Power station, Harland & Wolff and many more all over the country and world with wages to match. But it was not easy and it did involve a fair bit of luck.

Oddly since holding a degree I have not worked but that is more to do with an industrial injury than anything else. But still it's not the qualifications that count although they help to get foot in the door but a list of jobs where you can show employers how others have employed you many times. In other words you can show how people like your work.