Need some advice

[Connorwalsh96]

am looking on doing the level 2 + 3 diploma 2365 course it is 16 weeks. I have spoken to trade skills 4 u and they have said that I’d need to do the NVQ part which obviously comes after the level 2 + 3 but they said the NVQ part has to be done working in the industry. Would it be a struggle getting a job with only having the level 2 + 3 diploma but then completing the NVQ when I have a job? Do I need to be fully qualified first? I am 23 years old.

 

[sloughrookie]

Hi mate,

This is a bit of minefield topic on almost every social media platform. I have seen comments from a very small number of people saying they did get work after completing these short courses, albeit mostly with friends / family already in the industry.

Companies like TS4U will advertise that completing one of these courses will help give you an advantage in the employment market, however, a quick search on here, Youtube, Instagram etc you will see a LOT of hate against these short courses and established sparks (be they a larger company or sole trader in a van) will tell you they would not employ anyone who has done one of these courses. I haven't seen much evidence to suggest established sparks/companies are chomping at the bit to employ anyone who has done these courses over, for example a basic labourer from an agency who already has the relevant cards to enable them to work on sites.

A lot of sparks prefer the traditional route of a 4 year apprenticeship over the short courses but then there are very few apprenticeships available from what I've seen and if you are an older (non school/college leaver) trying to get into the industry and you have family/financial commitments then apprentice route is not viable unless you have lots and lots of savings to live off.

Even if you offer to work for someone for free in return for training does not seem to be that popular. I've seen reasons varying from " You'd slow me down" to "You'd not be a proper employee therefore may not be covered on my insurance".

I am in the same boat as you, looking for a career change and trying to get into the electrical industry. I have a few friends and contacts within the industry and unfortunately all of them have said they wouldn't be interested or able to give me any work experience for various reasons. Most of them keep a minimum of full time staff and just recruit agency staff as and when needed.

With the added headache of covid restrictions, pretty much everyone is concentrating on their own business survival (and quite rightly), therefore not even considering taking on a newbie with little or no experience.

Best advice I can offer is do what you want to do and expect nothing in return. View the cost of the course you want to do as an investment in yourself and do not expect to get that money back in the form of higher wage potential.

Best of luck and if yo can, post an update on here on how you get on.

 

[pc1966]

I have absolutely no connection with the trade, so please feel free to disregard my advice, but as couple of observations:

• A short course lacks any sort of practical skills, that takes time, effort and guidance. That is one reason companies are sceptical of them. If you pay many £k for it, its not going to pay you back.
• Working for free is a mug's game. I know you get interns and similar, but really if someone need an electrician's mate they ought to pay the going rate for it. Now in my background I have not been put in that position so it is easy to preach, but these days I would not ask someone to do something I would not be prepared to do myself and that includes "free work". A week of job experience for a school kid is OK, but beyond that it has to have a purpose, and if it is useful it deserves payment.
• Just now is a bad time for everyone. Businesses are suspended or closing, jobs are hard to get, customers are losing their livelihood and cancelling work, etc. It will get better, but for all of those reasons you should be looking at practical ways of getting paid experiance.

Just my 2p worth.

 

[telectrix]

@OP. atleast you are doing the right course (2365) rarther than the super short domestic installer course, which latter is the obne referred to by sloughrookie. to be fully qualified you need the nvq3 and am2 after that, but to do these you need practical experience, which you could get as a mate, even through an agency.

 

[sloughrookie]

@OP. atleast you are doing the right course (2365) rarther than the super short domestic installer course, which latter is the obne referred to by sloughrookie.

Hi, I am referring to all of the courses provided by companies like TS4U. I am also working on a 2635 course and from my experience even the 10 week level 2 or 16 week level 2&3 courses are viewed with scorn by many in the industry.

I am by no means implying OP will not get any work, just to be aware that doing any of these courses is no guarantee (as often mentioned by the training providers) as an easier route into the industry.

As lots of people will say, there is no substitute for experience. However, I also think if someone is willing to put in the hard work there is also a place front end learning.

On site experience is invaluable but only if you have a good mentor or company teaching you the right way. Experience alone does not automatically make someone more competent. I would rather spend 8/12 months learning as much as I can on one of these type of courses than be stuck working for someone who uses you to make tea and sweep up with no real learning during the same time frame.

I have known people in various industries that brag about how they have been doing their job for 20+ years and yet still haven't progressed much further than a labouror or (insert trade) mate. You need both, experience and training by good people.

It's not an easy situation to be in OP but if it's something you want to do (as I am) then go for it. Just be aware that you probably will not earn your money back for the course you do so just view it as an investment in yourself and your own learning experience.

Good luck!
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• Working for free is a mug's game. I know you get interns and similar, but really if someone need an electrician's mate they ought to pay the going rate for it. Now in my background I have not been put in that position so it is easy to preach, but these days I would not ask someone to do something I would not be prepared to do myself and that includes "free work". A week of job experience for a school kid is OK, but beyond that it has to have a purpose, and if it is useful it deserves payment.

On a full time basis I totally agree with you.

Sorry, I wasn't clear in my post but what I meant by my work for free comment was an offer to work with someone for a few days, perhaps a week or maybe over a couple of weekends (depending on their workload) to give someone the chance to assess you without any immediate financial outlay.

Hopefully within that time frame you show you are reliable, have a strong work ethic and willingness to learn. If you are lucky then maybe they can offer you some work. If not, then at least you have made a contact within the industry who may be able to offer you work in the future or recommend you to someone else.

In my experience it's much easier to get a job through word of mouth than it is to be just another CV in a pile of CVs.