Ignite a Rewarding New Career With Electrical Certification

Electricity and the electrical industry play a vital role in all of our lives. Consequently good electrical workers are crucial to all of us. Fundamentally electrical workers are employed to install, manage and test equipment and systems. The work is heavily dictated to by health and safety standards.

The industry is now one of the biggest in the UK, with 20 billion pounds of work carried out annually according to the Summit Skills report for 2009. So with such a demand for skilled workers, why not reap the rewards and become an electrician yourself.

How Do I Know I'll Enjoy It?

Am I the right sort of person for this work? To be an electrician you will need to be able to use a variety of tools effectively. You should have a logical, orderly way of thinking, and be safety conscious at all times. 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. And basically, if your goal is self-employment, you must have drive and determination.

Read Everything You Need To Know In Our FREE Report

You may have a few skills under your belt already, or you may know next to nothing. Whatever your present knowledge, good industry training will have you equipped for the job very quickly.

To make life easier for you, we've done extensive research on electrical training and careers, and written a very detailed E-Book. All the different training options are clearly explained - and we'll send it to you for FREE.

With so many training companies offering electrical courses in Britain, you'll find our information really useful to help compare the benefits of each one.

It makes sense to go through that first before you do anything else. Then re-visit this site to find links to various trainers and colleges who might have what you need. A useful shortcut if you want to Bookmark this page is 'Ctrl D' on your keyboard.

Start Working For Yourself

The driving force to get back into training is often motivated by a person's goal to work for themselves. Indeed, it's fair to say that most mature electrical students go that way. With continued high demand (especially in the domestic market) this makes a lot of sense. Sometimes people with other trade skills want electrical expertise, to give their business more credibility. And the last group of trainees are those who are into doing their own home installations and need to work within the law.

When householders find an electrician they're pleased with, they'll talk to other people about them and do a lot of free advertising. Your training will get you up to speed technically, but you'll also need good people skills when dealing with the public.

Thirty seven to forty hours a week is normal for most commercially employed full-time electricians. They can expect an average income of twenty-six thousand pounds a year taking the UK as a whole. On the other hand, electricians who are self-employed can expect more erratic hours, but they can also command more money. They will also have to allow for added business costs such as tools, transport and administration.

What's The Right Course For Me?

The electrical industry mainly recognises EAL and City & Guilds in Britain today. Some people (mainly youngsters out of school) also attain NVQ certifications through industrial placements. 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. This training usually leads to work in the domestic market, so excludes the necessity for lengthy NVQ's.

The private training colleges offer flexible programmes that lead to certifications that will get them up and running with the best financial return from their training investment. So whilst trainees emerge with more limited qualifications, they are still considered competent and qualified to carry out the more in-demand jobs.

Training For A Domestic Electrical Installer

Whatever your starting point, you'll cover certain essential practices whoever you train with. A good all round programme for beginners would be an EAL Domestic Installers Course, at Level 2.

You'll be taught a basic understanding of electrical wiring in the home and standard safety procedures. The law aims to ensure that all domestic electrical work is done in accordance with 'Part P' regulations, so your training will equip you for that.

Electrical installers also need to pass the City & Guilds Certificate 17th Edition IEE Wiring Regulations, so you can expect preparation for that.

You might also cover training for the C&G 2392 certification, which demonstrates competency in initial testing and verification, C&G 2391 for Inspection, Testing and Certification and C&G 2377 which covers PAT testing. The whole process will probably involve around 300 -500 hours of training, which will be part home study and part in-centre training. Once you've attained your skills and certifications, you'll have skills that will set you up for life.