Please Help, Where to go after level 2 2330??

[E14RKS]

Hi guys,

Hope you can shine some light on my situation,
I currently work as a air conditioning/refrigeration engineer and unfortunately work is thin on the ground, a year or so ago i completed my level 2 2330 city and guilds whilst working as a refrigeration engineer, recently things have got harder to find work so have considered finishing my electrical qualifications and making a change of career, Know the problem i have is that i have missed this year level 3 at my local college, starts september, i found some training centres that do it for £3000 but it take 12 weeks, two weeks on two weeks off, trouble is i have bills to pay and its a great deal of time to find to complete it, One guy i spoke to said i could just gain my 17th eddition, £495 inclusive of vat and only 3 Days, my 2392 inspection and testing £425 inclusive of VAT and only 4 days and my building regs which is £150 inc VAT and only 1 Day, allowing my to register with a governing body such as NICEIC to gain my Part P.
Now i know alot of your guys have problems with people who have never been in the electrical industry and start participating in domestic installations through there five day course, I have completed two years at 2330 and feel the other 3 qualifications should give me enough knowledge laong with some practical experience with a ecxperienced electrcian would give me enough knowledge and expereince to take electrical work on, Basicallly guys can i go this way or do i really need to complete level 3. thanks for all your reply in advance,
Cheers

 

[lunchtimelegend]

Hi

Firstly, it may be worth going back to your original college and asking them if you could rejoin your old class [smile nicely and play catch-up for a few weeks!]. Realistically the Level 3 syllabus covers more health and safety , quite a bit of the science and principles, e.g. motors, poly-phase, etc that may not be relevant in domestic installations. However; Level 3 also covers the fundamental principles of inspection and testing, circuit design and installation considerations. It is probably worth chasing after if you are going to seek employment with an electrical contracting firm or join an agency. Also, from experience; you never know whats around the corner in terms of work and the economy and concentrating on just domestic work may be risky. It's an area that feels the cold of recessions the fastest!

If the first option is not possible, attaining the 2382-10, 2392-10 is worthwhile. You may wish to continue to the 2391-10 after gaining a reasonable amount of experience with your testers. You would then be in a good position to carry out Periodic Inspection Reports, etc. To give yourself the best possible chance of success, read through the IEE On-Site Guide and Guidance Note 3 'Inspection and Testing'. Also, you can take a look at the syllabii for all City and Guilds courses on their website prior to starting your course. Hope this helps.

 

[ianmarks]

hi

i think you do need to go back to college and get level 3 2330 .there are a lot more things to learn in that last year ,the testing for one . And before you go out there and get nic eic registed a couple of years practical experience with a good long time severed spark is usefull .i now it sounds long and drawn out but its well worth it. .......ian.......

 

[sparkyj]

i think you do need to go back to college and get level 3 2330 .there are a lot more things to learn in that last year

currently doing my level 3 2 evenings a week and i gottasay it is a lot harder than level 2

 

[heathelect]

hi

i think you do need to go back to college and get level 3 2330 .there are a lot more things to learn in that last year ,the testing for one . And before you go out there and get nic eic registed a couple of years practical experience with a good long time severed spark is usefull .i now it sounds long and drawn out but its well worth it. .......ian.......

yep ians right with that, he must have had a good long time served spark to teach him.

 

[Sue - 1st Place]

There are a number of ways to achieve your goals. Obviously returning to college and completing your level 3 would be the best, but time and money are also issues to be addressed. Additionally there is also what type of work you want to be able to undertake to be considered. To be a fully qualified Electrician allowing you to work in all environments (excluding HV) then you will need to complete your 2330. If however you wish to limit yourself to domestic work only, then to be a Domestic Installer, you need to fulfill the requirements of a competent person scheme provider such as NICEIC, BRE, ELECSA, NAPIT or BSI. Their requirements are that you have a knowledge and understanding of the current wiring regulations, this can be achieved by successfully completing a City & Guilds 2382-10 course.

Also the scheme provider will require you to be able to install, inspect and test your work as well as have a knowledge and understanding of the requirements of part P of the Building Regulations.

The advice you have already been given, may be a little misleading as there is no mention of any qualifications including installation work, only testing and inspecting. You might find that further qualifications are required if you opt to take that route. I would recommend talking to the scheme providers to clarify this before making any decisions if you do opt for the shorter routes.

Part of the application process for joining one of the schemes is that an inspecter will need to inspect work you have completed, this used to be 2 or more jobs, but recent conversatios we have had with a number of the providers now suggests that where the job they view is a major one, then this is usually sufficient.

 

[CHRIS-H]

Hi....... i think u should go and do the level 3 for many reasons but the main reasons are as people have said it covers qite a bit of the testing and it will prepare u with a lot of knowledge you will need for futher courses...