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After 2 years in the industry there was no way in hell I was competent to be let out on my own and I worked bloody hard for me C&Gs

maybe not, but there are different circumsrtances from the OP and you. after 2 years you were still an apprentice, and under 20 i'm guessing? and the OP is mid thirties or something? theres a big difference there.
 
maybe not, but there are different circumsrtances from the OP and you. after 2 years you were still an apprentice, and under 20 i'm guessing? and the OP is mid thirties or something? theres a big difference there.

Absolutely no difference, at 20 or 50 with 2 years experience you cannot be competent.
 
I was trying to make the point about learning curves mate, after 2 years would it not be reasonable to assume that no matter what the age the position on those curves would be pretty much the same?
Unless of course the OP has spent those 2 years on one type of installation in which case it could be thought that a greater depth of knowledge in that installation type could be assumed. Mind you 2 years in to my time I was just starting to be allowed to connect up.
All of my posts on this thread have so far been intended to stimulate discussion, I've worked with some 5WWs who were bloody fantastic
 
Actually there is a difference, I would think a second year apprentice would be more competent.... At least they have had proper training in college and are working along side a spark who is showing them right from wrong. A Electrical Trainee is let out on their own, hasn't a clue, rough as a dogs dinner, electrically unsafe, and think they know it all.
 
A Electrical Trainee is let out on their own, hasn't a clue, rough as a dogs dinner, electrically unsafe, and think they know it all.
Not necessarily mate, some do the short course route and realise they don't know enough and go on to 2330 just like Glennspark did.
Do you think Strima would be as you describe above? I don't. He freely admits he's a Electrical Trainee but he knows his stuff
 
Bottom line is that OP has made a choice to get into the electrical field, and I take my hat off to him.

But, he is on the first rung of the ladder and as we know there are many more to climb.
His currently employer may be just taking advantage him and he just dosen't realise yet.
 
Not necessarily mate, some do the short course route and realise they don't know enough and go on to 2330 just like Glennspark did.
Do you think Strima would be as you describe above? I don't. He freely admits he's a Electrical Trainee but he knows his stuff

Indeed - everyone has different capabilities, and personal circumstances are different. As I said in my original post, there are a number of methods to enter the trade, and IMO, none of them are wrong.
 
Not necessarily mate, some do the short course route and realise they don't know enough and go on to 2330 just like Glennspark did.
Do you think Strima would be as you describe above? I don't. He freely admits he's a Electrical Trainee but he knows his stuff

But he has probably got experience, he has probably worked along side other electricians. I'm not being stereotypical but if you do 5 weeks in a classroom then are set loose on your own. I don't care what anyone says, it is going to be dreadful. Isn't it? And if they continue to work on their own, how will they know any different? They haven't got a spark standing over them shouting at them to do it better. Showing them right from wrong.
 
After 2 years in the industry there was no way in hell I was competent to be let out on my own and I worked bloody hard for me C&Gs

Oh I don't know Trev after 2 years
I could name nearly all the tools in my sparks canvas bag, which wasn't many,
I could sweep a floor and keep the dust down due to my vast experience in dust/water ratio,
I didn't make a bad cup of tea, but the washing up bit in the plasterers drum left a lot to be desired,
I could run off a 25mm conduit nipple in less than a minute,
Drill just the right degree hole in a hickey block,
Managed to grow that extra arm in order for me to bring all the required material to the proper workers without holding them up too much
Could be deadly accurate a 3/8 copper pipe putty gun over 20 feet
Be able to find several decent hiding places for a kip
back chat the sparks and still be able to escape without to much damage
Lie to publicans about my age
work out a Yankee four way bet to it's nearest penny
Know the difference between when to back chat and when to stay stum

..........................................and finally realize that when the sparks told me "son when I hang my overalls up at night they know more than you "
 
for methods id call them back doors,thats not a dig at anyone but what other profession would accept a free for all as were seeing now,and more worrying is the only people that seem to care are the sparks themselves,the companies dont care,the schemes dont care the gov dont care,where the industry will be in 10 yrs time is anyones guess,we might even have the spanish taking the **** out of our work..:shout:
 
But he has probably got experience, he has probably worked along side other electricians. I'm not being stereotypical but if you do 5 weeks in a classroom then are set loose on your own. I don't care what anyone says, it is going to be dreadful. Isn't it? And if they continue to work on their own, how will they know any different? They haven't got a spark standing over them shouting at them to do it better. Showing them right from wrong.

Working alongside other electricians certainly accelerated my learning curve. It was a 2-way benefit, too. The guy who I shadowed wasn't fresh out of training and benefited from my recent knowledge. Made for a fun experience!
 
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IMO you can not and never will getter any better than a full time served apprenticeship.

Only after a good 3 - 4 years of solid consistant training can you even think to go out there alone. Someone made the point in a previous post its only when you qualify you realise just how much you dont know.

IMO doing 6, 10 or 12 weeks at college can never equate to one day a week and the rest alongside i time served spark 4 year apprenticeship.

How could you ever possibly have the respect for the trade when your calling yourself qualified or competent in 6 weeks when in a recognised apprenticeship it takes years !!

I started out straight from school with the London Electricity Board (Best tools ever they supplied) and the way they taught people theyd have you believe you were never qualified !! Similar to malcs quote "Ive forgotten more than youll ever know my son " as i whack a nice dollop of yellow 77 in his tea !!
 
On the bigger jobs the time served guys wouldn't let the apprentices take break with them which at the time I thought was really unfair. Only when I joined their ranks in the time served cabin did I realise it was the only way they could get away from the constant questions of the keen lads and the stupidity of the ones who weren't
 
What I'd like to know is, 'What Electrical Theory knowledge do you have?'

None of those 5 courses you took contain any electrical theory, well virtually none.
 
IMO to have you as a supervisor is a risky business. Yes you do feel competent but feeling you are and being it are different. However it depends on how much of a lead role you actually take in the supervising of the teams.

I don't think you would be a competent supervisor in the true sense, and certainly not in a qualified sense. The JIB wouldn't grade you as an electrician and certainly not a site supervisor. Does your contracts manager etc have a lot of involvement? its my guess/hope that he is keeping a close eye on you.

Congratulations on what you have achieved, a few luck breaks and your doing well for yourself.

I just don't think it is a good idea to glorify a route to supervisory level that isn't approved nor recommended by a majority.

That said i think you should carry on with your learning and good luck for the future, it is certainly not pointless. If you lost this job tomorrow then what would happen.
 
yeah absolutely as the guys say you should have a minimum of 2360 pt 1 and 2 or parts A and B or whatever it was back in the day !!
 

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