"fast track" vs college

[watt4]

i wrote a long thread but me comp went mad and wiped it all grrrrr.

the main point was in my oppinion woteva route you take if you pass the exams your a qualified electrician.

Electrics is more theory than practical, and experience only makes you faster.

 

[m4tty]

Can see this being a long thread lol. Most time served sparks dont like fast track courses especially 5 day courses. But when theyve done 4-5 years apprentaship and people do 5 days and are allowed to do the same job, its a bit of a **** take. As you are thinking of doing a course i would recommend doing the 2330 level 2&3 as its the same as the part 1 & 2 they done years ago. I wouldnt do a 5 day course / 4 week course and be happy to go straight out there. HTH

 

[watt4]

elo m4tty
im a joiner/builder, im saftey contious and confident all i need is to gain some knowledge and elligibilty to be able to do domestic installations.

As far as i can see, you are right when you pointed out the main point why people dont like these "fast track" courses is that they have spent years to gain the same qualifications. I can see why they would be against them if "fast track" qualified people are taking their work, but ultimately it was their choice in the route they took. If they have spent years learning something that can be taught in days/weeks although it shows dedication it proves that colleges arnt providing a good enough service to its students. Im sure that those who take the college route believe that you get a better understanding and gain more knowledge, which ultimately doesnt count for much if at the end you only gain the same qualifications.

 

[Spa Key]

I can see why they would be against them if "fast track" qualified people are taking their work, but ultimately it was their choice in the route they took. If they have spent years learning something that can be taught in days/weeks although it shows dedication it proves that colleges arnt providing a good enough service to its students. Im sure that those who take the college route believe that you get a better understanding and gain more knowledge, which ultimately doesnt count for much if at the end you only gain the same qualifications.

Experience can't be taught in days/weeks, and it can't properly be taught in years at college.

If you're a joiner/builder you should know this. Someone told me how to lay a brick & chop a piece of wood. I think now I'm going to build myself a house.

 

[diditrain]

Let me give you some food for thought. You have probably seen loads of advertisement`s from various colleges stating that there is a shortage of all sorts of trades people. The truth is there is not. There are loads of fully qualified trades people being forced to take minimum wage jobs as they are unable to find employment in the trade that they chose to do.

It is now an employers market. They can dictate the amount that they want to pay for tradesmen to do work for them. Do not get caught up in all of the hype promising great rewards if you re-train.

People are having to work until they are a lot older before they retire. The amount of people being churned out by these colleges does not equal the amount retiring at the same time.

You may be lucky and find someone willing to give you an apprentiship. I repeat you may be lucky

 

[Amp David]

Sometimes though fast track will work. It all depends on the individual.

I know 3 sparks, 2 time served old boys and the other did a distance learning course which took him about a year to complete. They all work for the same company and if I had the choice of the three of them to do work for me, the old boys wouldn't get alook in.

 

[David.]

been time served looks better on paper but in reality your only at college 1 day a week thats why it takes 4 years to complete. Lets be honest how many time served people generally get a decent look in on a job before a year or so cause all they generally are is the sparky's bitch making tea/coffee getting tools etc etc. If you done the college for say 6 months solid mon-fri I bet all theory would have gone in then you could have solid hands on tools and you can easily do this quicker than 4 years

I think people that are generally stupid and have no common sense or technical ability at all should defo not look at the fast track thing. However, im not saying they are the best thing ever but give people a second chance to do something else. If your determined and have a good understanding and have a technical ability then the fast track thing may work but i would imagine you may find it difficult to get a "job" cause like already said, already trained sparks will know you will have done a "quick fix" once you hand your CV over and they dont like it. Even though your fresh training and understanding of everything learned compare to to a 30 yr old spark stuck in a 30yr old routine of "i've done it like this for years so it will be OK"
If you offer free services, gets some volunteering done then when you go for that job you will be able to say you are determined as you worked for free and have some already hands on skills.

now shoot me down

D.

 

[watt4]

At the end of these "fast track" courses you have studied and gained qualifications, so as far as the industry is concerned you have reached a level of competence to do the job. As for experience not being able to be taught you are right, however not having experience only means you will be slower due to having to think more about doing the job, but you can still do it. In domestic situation theres only so much you can know an if you have been doing that for years then your not learning anymore, so after the point where you are doing it as safe, neat and as fast as possible, experience makes no difference.

 

[Risteard]

Some qualifications cannot be achieved without experience, for example the NVQ requires employment to be completed.

Are all of the fast-track courses domestic only?

Regarding "competence", qualifications only forms part of competence. Experience is another important part.

 

[Amp David]

Some qualifications cannot be achieved without experience, for example the NVQ requires employment to be completed.

Are all of the fast-track courses domestic only?

Regarding "competence", qualifications only forms part of competence. Experience is another important part.

Of course it is.

 

[Damo666]

Most people can not afford even if the option was available to do an apprenticeship, especially if your over18. I have recently completed a short course with PPL and am now classed as a domestic installer, however I have very little practical experience for example i passed the PAT course without using a tester it seems madness. However once you have the knowledge you can obtain the practical experience yourself. I am currently now studing 2330 part time and while there is very little work out there, there is some I am being very selective on what jobs i do and i will continue this until i build my confidence up. Not all of us had the opportunity to do an apprenticship, and i say anyone who is trying to better themselves good luck no matter which way you do it