An Update On Electrical NVQ ‘s
For many people, an interesting and varied choice often means a career within the electrical industry. Often (and more correctly) referred to as 'Electro-Mechanical Engineering', we'll simply refer to it as the Electrical Industry for the sake of simplicity here. Equally we'll focus on those credentials that fit the UK domestic and commercial sector rather than those from around the world. Since there is such a wide list of choices in the electrical industry, we'll start by looking at the main themes first and then come back to any 'add-ons' later.
Essentially, we see two distinct forms of entry into the electrical market. The primary route is the apprenticeship which is considered the more traditional and then we have the second phase for those who are joining at a later stage. There are two sets of people for consideration firstly the 'Junior Entrants' and secondly the 'Mature Entrants'.
Mature Entrants who join the industry later on do so with the aim of working for themselves, usually as a one person business. However, people who join as junior entrants like the fact that they can join a recognised firm to pick up the bulk of their practical and work based skills. Often a young apprentice will be in their first job since leaving school, and will therefore have a host of ancillary skills to learn during their first few years as a working adult.
The distinct types of entry have differing styles of training - NVQ's are the key factor for all junior entrants. There is a particular requirement to attain the NVQ qualifications as part of the overall program. As a result students often have to find their own work programmes to give them the relevant testing and course work covered by most apprenticeships.
By working independently and without the need for NVQ assessments, many Mature Entrants can concentrate on those areas that provide the biggest profit and offer the largest practical solutions for themselves. Having said that, the mature student does aim to gain the necessary skills to do the job, whilst at the same time reducing their training costs at all times. Whilst this may seem to reduce the overall qualification set, this meets the trade requirements for the areas involved, and thus provides a quicker and more direct commercial route to the market.
In terms of typical earnings, we have two clear routes - those relating to employment and those for self-employment. Whilst we will focus on full time employment, there exists the issue as to whether self-employed people are doing this full time or part time. The aptitude and talent for getting things done can affect the levels of salary as well as any experience or knowledge gained.
The basic salary for Junior Entrants tends to start around the 12-15k mark, but rises regularly to around 30k with the right level of experience. Conversely, the UK newspapers often report experienced mature electricians can expect an income of anything up to 70.000. Regardless of all that is the need to cover off additional costs such as tools, clothes and even a vehicle and all that goes along with that. Earmarked within this is the need to cover additional expenses such as accountancy or insurance. Aside from that, the current skills shortage within the UK still means that there's lots of high value work out there. Without a doubt, the market would allow for some people to work a full seven days a week. Whilst figures of seventy to a hundred thousand are often bandied around in the press, they do not often inform you of the long hours you would need to work to achieve this.
To be fair, most Junior and Mature electricians experience very different working hours to each other. 'Junior Entrants' would normally be required to work Monday-Friday 9am-5pm. Whereas the Mature market can be more dependent on the domestic market for some - i.e. weekend and evening work, when their clients are available and back from work. Although by testing and installing various business systems, many self-employed electricians manage to work during a normal working week.
To be fair it's often the boss of a company who states the type of specialist knowledge that Junior Entrants gain whilst in their employ. However, many mature entrants gain extra skills by learning those trades such as gas and plumbing work. Certainly if they are employed within the domestic sector this makes it easier to take on work without having to rely upon other people.
One new, fast growing area - one that invokes a wide array of skills sets and is new to the industry overall - 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.
Author: Scott Edwards. Pop over to Electrical Training or Click HERE.
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