You Can Build a Rewarding New Career With Electrical Certification

Electricity is one of life's essentials in the modern world. We constantly need skilled electricians for both domestic housing and industry. 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. In 2009, over six hundred thousand people were employed in one sector or another of the UK's electrical industry. It could be a very good decision to bite the bullet and start your electrical training now!

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You might already have a little experience, or you might be starting from scratch - either way the right training and qualifications are vital. But it can sometimes be a bit unclear which training will be best, so we've written a completely unbiased report that will tell you what you need to know.

This is free to download, and tells you all you need to know about the different training paths into industry. It'll help you see the wood from the trees where electrical training's concerned.

Take a look at it now to fill in any gaps you may have.

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What's The Work Like?

People often question whether they'd be any good in this role. If you're a practical, reasoning sort of person and are good with your hands you'll be off to a fine start. It's important to be able to follow safety guidelines and procedures, so you need to be able to carry out tasks with great precision. You must be happy working alone if you're considering self-employment. Some electrical work requires a degree of strength, so it's useful to be physically fit. Finally if you're planning to work for yourself you'll need plenty of initiative and self-motivation.

Be Your Own Boss

The desire for self-employment is what frequently triggers a move into the electrical industry. 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. It's also not unusual for other tradesmen to get some electrical qualifications to boost their offering to clients. Others want the skills and legal qualifications to do more of their own DIY.

As you might expect, a good deal of your domestic work can come from client recommendations. So you'll be costing yourself money if you're not well mannered and considerate to everyone you deal with.

Commercially employed electricians will usually work a 37 - 40 hour week, with possible overtime at the weekends. Average salaries in 2009 were around 26K according to SalaryTrack 2009. In contrast, domestic electrical contractors working for themselves should earn a good deal more, but they'll also have to put in more flexible hours. They will need to take their overheads into account as well though.

How Do I Begin?

The professional industry bodies offering the most regarded certifications are EAL and C&G. School leavers bolt on National Vocational Qualifications to their City & Guilds through work placements in industry. Overall this extends training to 36 to 48 months. So older career changers tend to go for less lengthy courses that they can fit in around their current work. As most of them are preparing for work in housing rather than industry, they don't need NVQs. Career-changers want the best value for their money, and greater flexibility. 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's Involved In Such A Course?

Although course contents will vary slightly, every level 2 EAL Domestic Installer Course will follow a proven track. Your course will deal with basic wiring principles - installing new electrics, rewiring houses, fitting appliances etc.

You'll be primed to pass Part P, so that all the work you do will conform to legal requirements.

Similarly, you'll have training for the City & Guilds 17th Edition IEE Wiring Regulations Certificate (2382), another legal necessity. Once you've trained sufficiently and become qualified in these areas you can both carry out and self-certify all your domestic work.

Your training will include distance-learning work to complete at home, and all your workshops and assessments in-centre.

How quickly you get a through the course will be down to you. You could be successfully working in customers' homes a few short months from now - building your future on solid ground.