thinking of training with train 4 trade skills

[ads fixer]

hey,
I'm thinking of training with these guys doing an NVQ level 3, it's going to take up to 2 years and cost 6 grand. I've got concerns, I've heard that a lot of these courses don't really prepare you for the job and employers aren't that keen on giving jobs to graduates- can anyone tell me how accurate this is please?? thanks adam

 

[fog]

Please check out your local college probably be a year longer but much less in price, 6 grand a lot of cash!

 

[Deleted member 3072]

Depending on your age i would try contacting JTL and see if you can get an apprenticeship

 

[jakobsongs]

DO NOT TOUCH THESE GUYS!
They are con artists, nearly got stung a couple of years ago with a computer course, same address in Luton.

 

[billybob]

Whichever course you look at,check with any of the governing bodies(nic,eca,napit)how they regard the qualification.
I had a problem with a crash course I did(I'm not an electrician,kitchen fitter,que hatred from assembled ranks!),ie,the eca were querying the validity of the qualification I recieved,it was nic backed,but they were still unsure.
So it might be worth getting their feedback.

 

[ezzzekiel]

my mate did a week course with a local, reputable firm only to discover that after he past none of the pp schemes would recognise his certificate - there is some justice in the world

 

[Smugley]

ezzzekiel, hi there, just wondering if you'd care to name the course your friend completed which was not recognised by any of the schemes.. Thanks

 

[salisbury spark]

Im doing c&g 2330 at college(im 40). Ive done my 8 day 'Domestic Installer Course'. None of these give you the skills to just go out there and Trade. Its completely different 'out there' to a workboard on a college wall. Speak to your college as NVQ2/3 are free if under 19 or got low school grades. Cost per year is @£600. It does give you the theory and some practice. - Tutors advise joining a firm for 6months to get experience... Im self employed - spend a lot of my time thinking how to do something and to the regs/safely and best route for cables.etc. Not to mention having to work LIVE in factories where conduit is jammed full of cables. Then theres DIY electrics in the home to negotiate. Im Getting faster and the more times i do something the quicker i get. - Love being out there working for myself though. Good luck.

Checkout the 'ELECTRICIANS UNITE' section on this forum. - some of these guys have the knowedge but lack the hands on... might give you some idea what you can do when finished course... Also finding work experience can be hard. - I had a guy for work experience for 4 days tought him everything i know as i went along. - After 4 days decided he knew enough and sodded off.... Now will make them work before i give out FREE training without some work in return....

 

[Dave88]

if any1 does want to go ahead with A train for trade skills course (either electrical or plumber) i didnt even start mine due to circumstances, the course costs £6000 but ive paid £3500 so far any one that wants to start a fresh 1
(AS all new course material is sent out) let me know you can have mine of me for less that half the price £2500
save some money!!


any 1 intrested get in touch

Dave

 

[Dave 85]

hey,
I'm thinking of training with these guys doing an NVQ level 3, it's going to take up to 2 years and cost 6 grand. I've got concerns, I've heard that a lot of these courses don't really prepare you for the job and employers aren't that keen on giving jobs to graduates- can anyone tell me how accurate this is please?? thanks adam

Your concerns are entirely justified. You have done the right thing by researching this before throwing your money around.
I have not been to a training centre, I did night college, but I can tell you with certainty that unless you already work in the building trade and know how to do electrical work, doing training/qualifications will nowhere near prepare you for working unsupervised as an electrician. You need experience! Unless you are 16 and willing to work for peanuts for 4 years, its very hard to get. 'Electricians' who are all qualifications and no experience are literally fighting over opportunities to work for free at the moment.

 

[Dave 85]

if any1 does want to go ahead with A train for trade skills course (either electrical or plumber) i didnt even start mine due to circumstances, the course costs £6000 but ive paid £3500 so far any one that wants to start a fresh 1
(AS all new course material is sent out) let me know you can have mine of me for less that half the price £2500
save some money!!


any 1 intrested get in touch

Dave

Damn theres a Dave88 now?
And he writes bigger than me.
Too many bleeding Daves on this forum. I was once on a job with 12 tradesmen 6 of whom were called Dave..(true story)

 

[Current Affairs]

It depends on your ability. It never ceases to amaze me how people can get wiring so wrong. It aint rocket science, especially in Domestic. Seen it from both fast track trainees & time served apprentice electricians, they still screw it up. Its how you apply what you have been taught, you know your own ability.
If you go the fast track route you will proberly want to plan to work for yourself, but you are going to have a whole lot of required training missing from the college course, as most will not teach you how to chase a wall, remove floorboards, sink a back box etch.etch.

Had a Lad shadow me after his college training, I wasnt paying him or expecting any work out of him. More of a spectactor, he just wanted some real job experience after his 6 week course. He did feel completly out of his depth on a real job and felt completly robbed by the college. Maybe worth getting in touch with some local Electricians that may be willing to let you shadow them after your training

 

[ample current]

I think train 4 trade skills is like most other training courses. An apprenticeship would be better but if your to old then your optons are limited. The qualifications are City & Guilds so are recognised, but like most have said already its just qualifications (which of course you need) but equally, what it doesnt give you is experience. A knowledge of the building industry is very helpful. Experience is the key to getting employment after the exams.
Good luck.

 

[wade88]

This particular topic has been discussed time and time again here - even in the short term i have been a member of this forum annoying everyone. :hurray:

However it always comes back to the same old thing, its a real chicken and egg scenario. You cant get the work (or do the work) because your inexperienced/unqualified, yet you cant get the experience without having done the work or hold the relevant paper work.

So every young lad and his dog are scrabbling around trying to get on board with a time served spark and hang around him all day watching what hes doing and trying to learn the actual skills necessary to carry out electrical work. But the lads cant get this either - who wants a spotty 18 year old stuck to your face all day when you have jobs to get done? Not many people i can tell you. So trying to break into the trade is hard hard hard work, harder still picking up good, repeat, bill paying work because the competition is immense.

If your too old and already have commitments financially, such as sprogs, mortgage or rent, a girlfriend (by the far the most costly), subscriptions to housewife weekly, whatever, taking the time out of your work to go and re-train for lengthy periods, or drop your hourly wage to £0.46p or whatever it is apprentices are paid these days just isnt feasible. Yet short courses DO NOT teach you what you need to know to get balls-deep, *pardon the expression* into work properly. Likelihood is you will turn up to a job and...

a)brown your pants,
b)make a total hash of what your doing leaving the house with potentially unsafe work being completed
c)both of the above simultaneously

I firmly believe there is no real answer to this - the one thing that is however 100% essential, is the correct knowledge and suitable experience. Both of which take time to acquire. Go to bed and put down your jackie collins novel oi oi, and pick up the regs, OSG, GN3 whatever it is, and read read read. Then when you do land your first job, you can start work confidently knowing where your at. Short courses just churn lads out ASAP, take your £6large and then drag the next batch in. You will learn, dont get me wrong, but you wont learn with your hands. That is where the graft and skill is, that is where you will go wrong without the experience. Knowledge is power, but without knowing how to chase a wall or run your cable, there wont be any power....:dunce:

 

[Spazz]

All these online training companies take your money through the paperwork at you and offer no help at all!

They say you will have a personal trainer you can contact anytime - but they take ages to get back to you.

Get to your local college and do it that way - even if you do an apprenticeship or an afternoon course - FORGET THE ONLINE training Providers!