Electrician jobs

When attempting to evaluate the expertise and capabilities of a person who is working in the electrical business in the UK, the electrical industry may seem to some as something of a minefield, which is an understandable perception. In this article, Steven Devine throws some light on the credentials (past and current) that someone may have and what they all imply. He does so by focusing on the different types of qualifications.

When people call the IET Technical Helpline, they often have a variety of questions about a difficulty that many people have, which is determining what exactly is meant by electrotechnical credentials. You could be thinking about starting a career as an electrician, in which case you might be curious about the many options that are open to you in this field. You may be a recruiter who is perplexed by the fact that the numbers, names, and letters listed next to various credentials have no relation to the requirements that you yourself might have achieved twenty, ten, or even five years ago. Or, it's possible that you want to hire someone or take on an apprentice, but you're not fully sure how to evaluate a candidate's credentials.

It is becoming harder to identify whether or not a person has the necessary expertise since the electrical business is seeing the emergence of so many subspecialties. Despite having all of the necessary credentials, an industrial electrician who has spent the most of their career maintaining three-phase gear may not have the necessary expertise to carry out maintenance on residential dwellings for a housing association. A fully certified electrician who is registered as a home installer and who is able to certify their own work in line with Part P of the building requirements may quickly turn this situation around and make it comply with the laws. On the other hand, it's possible that they've never spent a day working on a building site. A straightforward discussion with each candidate about their previous work experience is likely to reveal a great deal about how well-suited they are for the position. You will also be able to get a deeper comprehension of the significance of their credentials by making use of the data included in this article and the tables that are shown after it.

The following is a list of the numerous titles that you can come across, as well as a broad overview of what you might anticipate someone holding such titles to have accomplished in terms of their education and professional experience. Because of the wide variety of possible combinations of experience and credentials, this is in no way a final guide.

Apprentice (the traditional way)

Apprenticeship programs are often regarded as the best and most conventional way to acquire the skills necessary to work as an electrician, which is a well-known title in the building and construction sector. In addition to receiving technical instruction at a university or other training facility, it is beneficial for an electrical apprentice to get experience on the job and receive mentoring from more seasoned electricians. To become a qualified Electrical Apprentice, one must first get a Level 3 technical certificate and either an NVQ or a Level 3 Diploma. In most cases, they will be operating under the direction of certified Electricians and Supervisors. The technical instruction received in a classroom setting and the practical experience obtained on the job both contribute significantly to the overall qualification earned during an apprenticeship. Learners are often anticipated to have at least grade C credentials in the subjects of mathematics, English, and information and communication technology (ICT). Apprenticeships typically run between three and four years, at the end of which the trainee is awarded the appropriate credentials to work as an electrician.

Electrician's Mate

An Electrician's Mate is often an untrained individual who works in the electrical sector and has some knowledge and understanding of electrical installations. This person is able to help an Electrician and may be certified to Level 1 or Level 2 of the Electrical Industry Qualification Scheme. In most cases, an Electrician's Mate will not be given the opportunity to operate independently and will instead wait to get instructions on how to do their tasks from competent electricians. This is the standard practice. On big industrial and commercial projects, it is not uncommon to have a number of Electrician's Mates working together under the direction of licensed Electricians in order to bring down the total cost of the project.

Possibly held qualifications include the following:

Access to the Building's Facilities and Services

Electrotechnical Craft, Level 2 (or equivalent), or

Building Services Engineering Specifications and Technicals

Electrician (qualified)

An electrician is often someone who has finished an apprenticeship that lasted between three and four years and who has a Level 3 technical and vocational qualification or a Level 3 Diploma. These qualifications can be acquired without serving an apprenticeship, but in order to obtain the vocational qualification, an electrician will need to have worked in the electrical industry for at least three years. It is highly unlikely that an electrician will be able to obtain the vocational qualification without having worked in the electrical industry for at least three years. The Joint Industry Board may recognize an individual as an electrician if they have a Level 3 Technical Certificate and a National Electrotechnical Training (NET) AM2 certificate. Additionally, the individual must be able to provide proof that they have been employed in the electrical industry for a sufficient amount of time (JIB). It is reasonable to assume that a person who is considered to be an electrician possesses the experience and knowledge necessary to perform electrical work in domestic, commercial, and industrial settings; however, it is possible that commercial and industrial settings may require some additional specialized training in certain instances.

Certified Electrician (Approved)

You could hear the phrase "Approved Electrician" rather often. However, what does all of this truly signify? An electrician who has accomplished all of the tasks necessary to get this rank from the Joint Industry Board is referred to as a master electrician (JIB). An electrician is required to fulfill a number of prerequisites before being granted the designation of Approved Electrician by the JIB. They would, without a doubt, be expected to have successfully finished an apprenticeship or to possess credentials that are equal to those required. In addition to this, they will have the necessary amount of experience working as an electrician (in excess of two years after completion of qualifications is usually acceptable). In most cases, it is anticipated that the individual will possess at least a Level 3 certification in inspection, testing, and initial verification, such as one of the following:

credentials consisting of the City & Guilds 2391, 2394, and 2395, and/or

criteria for the EAL Inspection and Testing as well as the Initial Verification.

Approved It is customarily anticipated of electricians that they would be able to design, construct, and check a broad variety of electrical systems in the most productive and cost-effective way possible. They will have the ability to manage projects and devise efficient methods of working based on the drawings and requirements provided. In addition to this, they will have an exceptional comprehension of the prerequisites outlined in BS 7671.

Installer for Private Residences (England and Wales only)

The term "domestic installer" has been given its current meaning since since the Building Regulations' Part P, which addresses "Electrical Safety in Dwellings," came into effect. Domestic Installers are not recognized to be electricians in the electrical sector, and as a result, they are not obliged to go through the same level of training that an apprentice does, which takes four years. Having said that, a significant number of electricians are also registered as domestic installers.

In most cases, it is anticipated that a Domestic Installer would have at least a fundamental comprehension of the process of installing new electrical systems and will be conversant with the most recent criteria of BS 7671. There is a wide range of possibilities when it comes to the amount of expertise that a residential installation may have. There are a lot of household installers out there, and many of them are fully trained electricians with a lot of experience working in the electrical sector. However, there are also a significant number of people in this field who have not successfully finished an apprenticeship or otherwise acquired the necessary skills and experience. In point of fact, there are facilities that provide instruction to those who are brand new to the electrical business and have absolutely no previous experience. Generally speaking, in order to get registered as a Domestic Installer, two requirements are required:

Current Level 3 Award in the Requirements for Electrical Installations (17th Edition), and either a Level 2 or Level 1 Apprenticeship in Electrical Installations.

The Level 3 Award in the Initial Verification and Certification of Electrical Installations, or an equivalent qualification, is required.

The Level 3 Award in Approving Electrical Work in Dwellings in Compliance with Building Regulations is a qualification that demonstrates competence in this area.

The total amount of suggested study time for these credentials is around one hundred hours. Completion of these qualifications may be accomplished in a reasonable amount of time. Depending on the needs of the center and the amount of expertise you already have, this may be as short as three weeks.

In addition, domestic installers will be needed to present documentation of work that they have completed to an assessor from the scheme provider in order to establish that they are competent in the field. The Domestic Installer will typically choose an installation from among those available for inspection and will then make the required preparations for the evaluation.

Work that requires notification or work that does not?

If work is going to be done on a residential property, it is essential to decide in advance whether or not the work in question falls under the category of "notifiable" or "non-notifiable." If the latter is the case, the person doing the work is exempt from the need that they register it with either the local council or the scheme provider. If the work is required to be reported, then the person carrying out the work is required to utilize one of the three procedures that are available and outlined in the document that is the HM Government Building Regulations 2010.

Qualifications

In England, qualifications, exams, and assessments are overseen by the Office of Credentials and Examinations Regulation, often known as Ofqual. In Northern Ireland, vocational qualifications are overseen by the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. It is important to keep in mind that all qualifications that are recognized will be required to comply with the stringent standards of what was formerly known as the Regulated Qualification Framework (RQF), which was formerly known as the National Qualifications Framework (NQF), and which is now more commonly known as the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF). Therefore, if you get a Level 2 certificate from one Awarding Organization, it will be essentially equivalent to a qualification in the same subject earned from another Awarding Organization. This is because all Awarding Organizations follow the same standards.

The organization of credentials as well as a comparison of the different levels are shown in Table A.

The credentials, both historical and contemporary, that may be required of you to work in the electrical business are outlined in Table B.

Please refer to the PDF that accompanies this article for both tables.

Competence

The question "what constitutes a competent person?" is one that we get rather often.

To answer your question in a nutshell, a person is considered competent when they are able to carry out a certain activity in a secure and efficient manner.

This may be quite difficult to evaluate, particularly in the case of an electrician since the work that they will be performing might vary quite a bit from one job to the next. The individual carrying out the electrical work should have suitable training and expertise as one of the fundamental prerequisites. This is an anticipated need.

This does not imply that a person who has a Level 3 certificate in electrical installations is qualified to carry out work on any and all electrical installations; only certain types of electrical installations are covered by the Level 3 qualification. There is a good chance that there will be some ground they have never covered before. On the other hand, their experience and training will have at the very least equipped them with the capacity to operate in a secure environment and determine whether or not they are in fact qualified to carry out a certain activity.