Simplifying Electrician Qualifications – The Best Routes
Author: Jason Kendall | Category: ShoppingLots of people choose a career within the electrical industry because it both appeals and motivates them. From here on we will use the phrase of Electrical Industry to explain the more accurate term of \”Electro-Mechanical Engineering\”. Also, due to a wide variety of qualifications and standards throughout the world, we\’ll focus on those that fit the UK domestic and commercial market. We will begin by reviewing the main issues first and come back to the \’add-ons\’ later, because of the huge number of options available as a career within this subject.
On consideration, we observe two forms of access into the electrical market. To being with we have the older apprentice course and then secondly we have the option for those who wish to make a career change to join the industry. We have to reference individuals so we will plainly do so by \’Junior\’ and \’Mature\’ entrants.
Principally, Mature Entrants join the electrical workplace later on, and focus on becoming self employed. This means working on their own and not having to pay salaries to anyone else. Alternatively, \’Junior Entrants\’ will pick up lots of their work place skills by working with an already reputable electrical company. During their first years in the working environment, a young apprentice, or junior entrant, will have a host of additional skills to learn.
The different ways into electrical work have two distinct types of training: NVQ\’s are the key factor for all junior entrants. An NVQ qualification would need to be obtained as part of the training program. \’Junior Entrants\’ will have to be in an apprenticeship of some sort in order to achieve the testing and course work required.
Many mature students gain entry into the market without the NVQ element, and simply choose the most commercially practical route to self employed work. For example by concentrating on those qualifications aimed at giving them the best return from their training costs. This system does meet the purposes set out and therefore often provides a faster and more direct route into a trading position.
In terms of typical earnings, we have two clear routes – those relating to employment and those for self-employment. Obviously, with self-employment, there is the added issue of whether the Entrant is part-time (working around another job) or full-time; we will concentrate on full-time. Skill and knowledge levels can often determine salary levels, although this is equally via a proven ability or certification scheme.
\’Junior Entrants\’ can expect a basic salary of 12K at the beginning of their training. With application and experience this figure often more than doubles in time. \’Mature Entrants\’ salaries though are often more difficult to work out, but can rise to 70.000 and above as reported in UK newspapers. That aside, many added costs need to be remembered by self employed people in order to make their business work. In addition to this they will also have to allow for items such as accountancy and personal/professional insurance. In the UK there is a lot of work for electrical professions due to a short fall of current skilled people. In light of the above, a full seven day week is available to most people should they want it. Although by working very long hours and having assistants to help, the figures of 70-100 thousand advertised in newspapers might be achieved, it wouldn\’t be easy.
To be fair, most Junior and Mature electricians experience very different working hours to each other. Monday to Friday 9-5 would be the working week of most \’Junior Entrants\’. But due to the needs of the domestic market the Mature Entrant is often more reliant upon when their client base gets back from work. With many self-employed electricians the core of their income comes from items such as business testing and installation and as such operates during the main part of the week.
If a Junior Electrician chooses an electrical career, then the main business actions of their company often dictate the type of expertise that they gain. Whereas the mature entrant can gain knowledge from any trade source – even one outside of the core of electrical work. This gives them the chance to complete work for domestic clients without having to sub contract jobs out every time.
One fresh approach is that of the \’Green Engineer\’. The curiosity of both Junior and Mature Electricians to this new industry is well founded especially when considering the power of the UK and the EEC markets in areas of growth and governmental projects.
Written by Scott Edwards. Check out Electrical Training or Electrical NVQ.