Want A Satisfying Career? Consider Becoming An Electrician...

The electrical industry has become one of the most significant aspects of life today. Everybody relies on a safe and continuous output of supply, and on skilled workers to manage it. As there are many different jobs within the industry, the nature of an electrician's work will depend on the type of specialist training they've had. The electrical market as a whole now accounts for 3 percent of Britain's Gross National Product. With the right qualifications you too could be enjoying a profitable and rewarding electrical career.

Will It Suit Me?

Who gets on well with this type of work? As electricians use tools and are very hands-on most of the time, you must be able to work well practically. As safety is paramount, you need to be logical and well disciplined. Your training will give you the technical knowledge, but you must have the capacity to solve problems as you go. Obviously if you're colour-blind, this work isn't going to be right for you. But most important of all, if you want to work for yourself you'll need to be resolute and persistent.

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Once you've passed the correct industry exams, you can be on your way to a great new career. Take a look at our regularly up-dated e-book to get to grips with the best training route for you. Get hold of your free copy today to give yourself the edge. It'll help you see the wood from the trees where electrical training's concerned.

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Becoming Self-Employed

Many career-changers consider electrical work so they can set themselves up in business. Colleges are constantly enrolling new students who want greater freedom in their working lives. It's very sensible when you look at how much work there is particularly in the domestic sector.

Some people train so they can do electrical work part-time to generate additional income. And some people take electrical courses in order to safely fit a new kitchen at home for example.

The beauty of doing electrical work is that every good job you do will be talked about by your clients. Obviously, the same goes for any bad experience they have! You'll be taught all your technical skills on the course, but also remember to have good personal skills as well.

Electricians working for commercial companies generally do a regular forty hour week. Salaries generally come in around the 26,000 mark, though it's higher than that in some areas. Self-employed electricians should be prepared to extend their hours where necessary, but usually their higher pay will reflect that. They will need to take their overheads into account as well though.

How Should I Get Going?

City & Guilds and EAL are the Trade Certification organisations to be aware of. School leavers bolt on National Vocational Qualifications to their City & Guilds through work placements in industry. This requires a 3 or 4 year commitment. More senior applicants most often choose short training programmes that they can work through at their convenience. This type of coursework prepares students mostly for domestic jobs, so negates the need for the more extended NVQ's. Commercial training companies provide a variety of options to help students prepare for work in the shortest time possible. This reduces the overall qualification set, but it meets the trade requirements for the areas involved, and so provides a quicker and more direct route to the market.

What Does This Involve?

A typical EAL Level 2 Domestic Electrical Installers course would take you from no knowledge to competency in domestic work. You'll learn how to install electrics, rewire houses and fit household electrical equipment. As certain qualifications are now a legal requirement, you'll be coached in the essentials to pass Part P - the title now given to relatively new regulations for domestic electrical work.

Similarly, you'll have training for the City & Guilds 17th Edition IEE Wiring Regulations Certificate (2382), another legal necessity. Working towards these industry-recognised qualifications will equip you not only to work on jobs in kitchens and bathrooms, on lighting circuits and wall sockets etc. but also to self-certify them as well.

Domestic training such as that just described will probably take you several hundred hours, spread over whatever time period you choose. You could be successfully working in customers' homes a few short months from now - building your future on solid ground.