Career Direction

[GJD]

Hey Everyone,

First time poster here, not really sure if this is the right place to post this, but i have nothing to lose!

I am basically just looking for some advise on where to take my career now, I am 25 and started fairly late within the electrical industry, (around 2 years ago I had NO experience whatsoever) I was taken on by a family friend who did ONLY Inspection and testing, I worked with him for about a year and gained a lot of good knowledge and experience, but with testing, no install.

I completed my 17th, 2392 and 2391 and then went on from there to another Testing company (no install, yet again)

I have been working there for around a year, I have some great experience with testing and am getting some really high end jobs (5000+ Circuit tests with a few guys working beneath me etc) but I really don't know what direction to go in now, I feel I have come to a stand still with my career..

I signed up for the NVQ 3 and have paid the fees and am enrolled on the course, but I don't get the work to allow me to complete it and i'm working 6/7 days a week in my current job meaning I don't have the time to arrange it out of hours.

Some people have said to go HV, Fire Alarms, go back to the start and do the install.. But I really don't know what's the best option, what would be the next logical step? I need to get out of my current job as it's such long hours and it's destroying my soul one day at a time (nights, to days, to working away, with every weekend..) If anyone could impart some wisdom or .. I don't really know, but any advise is more than appreciated!!

Thanks

P.S - Apologies I have just realised I've posted this in the wrong section - DOH!

 

[Spoon]

Hi mate and welcome to the forum. Personally I think its hard to give someone advice on which direction to go as we are all different. Some people live working away on site. I personally don't. I prefer coming home and spending time with the missus and kids.
If you are going to do house bashing work then I bet you will have to work long hours, especially if you are just starting off. Just ask the guys here.
Or you could be like me, sitting in front of a screen all day long. But you do regular hours and get weekends off. All depends on what you want.
Not much help am I....

 

[GJD]

hey mate, thanks for your response. Well at the moment as I do just testing, it's more on the commercial end of the spectrum, lots of working away from home, minimum 4 hours a day driving (unpaid of course) and out of hours work, which would be fine if the money was relative to the effort, but it's not!

I enjoy the testing and I prefer using my brain than my hands, but I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty either.. I don't really know what I'm hoping for here to tell you the truth, eventually I want to go it alone but I feel that 2 years experience (no matter how fast a learner) is no-where near enough! I'm not sure what other avenues are there to approach, I'm happy to do home learning / out of hours studying, college courses etc, but I just don't know what and of course, without experience in the field a lot of it is pointless!

I don't really want to go into house bashing, I like the commercial side of things as it's more challenging and you come across a larger variety of installations (I've tested everything from massive office/council blocks, large government buildings, fire stations, radio towers, caravan sites, even a boat!)

I just don't know what kind of job I can get my foot in the door with only a 2391 and a 17th - other than testing! (Which I feel lucky to have anyway as I don't have the install side)

 

[Spoon]

Sounds like you enjoy doing your job, but don't like the travelling & extra time you dont get paid for.
Also looks like you don't have any spare time to help out someone to do so some installation work and also you gain some knowledge at the same time.
How come you don't get paid for the 4 hours of driving? That's not right.

 

[GJD]

Tell me about it, they class driving as our own time and we're not paid for it, we have company vans and they pay the fuel so maybe that is their reasoning? But it's not really mentioned.. The only time we get paid for driving is if we work away for any period of time, we are paid the drive down there, but not back (or the daily commute)

It's quite unreasonable, the company I work for, I once had a 5pm start (3am finish) with a midday start the same day! just last week i had a day with 7 hours driving (8 hours on site) and was only paid my standard 8 hours! I do enjoy the job and I like the fact that this company get some really high end work which is great for my CV, but after a year i'm really starting to burn out and I don't want to risk leaving until i secure another job, but i'm wondering if there's any room for progression in this line! If I'm learning, I'm happy, but it's got to the point where I am now explaining things to others at work, instead of learning and I want to be progressing constantly, if not money wise, at least with my knowledge of the industry..

When I started they made me sign something saying i'd work 48+ hours a week, they were forth coming about how unsociable the hours were and poor the money was, but i was desperate to get my foot in the door as I had such little experience, but now I feel I am becoming more valuable, at least as a tester (the install is REALLY holding me back though) and I don't know what to do - maybe just look for other testing jobs, with more sociable hours? but then the same problem of lack of progression is an issue.. Really stuck in a rut at the moment

 

[Spoon]

and I don't know what to do - maybe just look for other testing jobs, with more sociable hours?

Looks like this might be your best solution. If you do get another job doing testing with more sociable hours then at least you may get a change to do some install or have the spare time to help out someone doing install work.
Could always have a word with your boss about how you are now supervising people now and putting in lots of hours, so you want more money.
If you dont get more money you will chop his head off....

Dont really mean the last bit... (when are we getting a sarcastic font?)

 

[wade88]

Hi mate,

considered a career in renewable energy? I am hopefully looking in the next 18 months to either get off shore (probably roughnecking to show i have the muscle for it and willingness to learn, then work my way up from there) OR to get into wind energy. Turbine maintenance and inspection. Great money, exciting work and renewable energy is going no where fast, thats for sure. A foot in the door now, could seriously pay off at a later date when there are no more countries to invade and oil to steal. Will need to rely on Poseidon himself and the wind gods to make the kettle work.

Good back ground in testing would never be a bad start. I'll keep you up dated on what i dig up, but i firmly believe for those on the fence about their career around this industry, it's well worth reading into.

Ben

 

[Spoon]

to show i have the muscle for it

By the look of your profile pic you haven't.... my 3 year old has more muscles...

Where is this sarcastic font????

 

[wade88]

It's true.... I look like a noodle.

 

[oldtimer]

Yea years ago I had an interview where the guy said you dont get paid for the first 4 hours overtime a week but if you dont work any during the week we can get you to work a weekend for nowt every 4 weeks . His face was a picture when I got up half way through the interview and thanked him for taking the time to interview me.

 

[trev]

What about doing the design course and getting into that side of things.

 

[Jamzie]

ONC / HNC route. Industry out there is crying out for EC&I Techs n Engineers!

 

[flyingsausage]

Hi mate,

considered a career in renewable energy? I am hopefully looking in the next 18 months to either get off shore (probably roughnecking to show i have the muscle for it and willingness to learn, then work my way up from there) OR to get into wind energy. Turbine maintenance and inspection. Great money, exciting work and renewable energy is going no where fast, thats for sure. A foot in the door now, could seriously pay off at a later date when there are no more countries to invade and oil to steal. Will need to rely on Poseidon himself and the wind gods to make the kettle work.

Good back ground in testing would never be a bad start. I'll keep you up dated on what i dig up, but i firmly believe for those on the fence about their career around this industry, it's well worth reading into.

Ben

Offshore is the way to go,I am working offshore in the Oil & Gas side,my friend is doing the same but he is desperate to work on new built offshore wind turbines,as the money on them is good.
I had a list of companies that do this but can't seem to find the file.

 

[wade88]

If you come across that file FlyingSausage i would very very much appreciate a nod in the right direction.

Also, what sort of essential skills, exp, quals are needed to get a food it the door. Any information on offshore work and getting on the ladder at any stage would be hugely appreciated my end mate.

 

[GJD]

Thanks for all the responses guys, as for D&V - I considered it, but I still feel that with the installation experience lacking I'm missing a big chunk of the puzzle and I'm worried about going even further and it always holding me back?

ONC/HNC was something I considered, but it's a 2 year course and i've no way to work it around my current job sadly.. If I was to do it I would have to change job, possibly even job type and i don't know the end goal from that, what type of job it would open up to me?

As for renewable energy, it was certainly something I was looking at, the way things are going it is a good foot hold on the future, but the course i found was £10,000 and required degrees and 4 A levels or something to even get in the door, I have no degree!
Any more information on the offshore stuff would be great if you can find it!