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In all our courses, our pass rates are over 95% - first time! So you can be very confident you’ll achieve. But in the unlikely event you do fail a course, as long as you have completed the theory and practical training parts to your tutor's satisfaction, you can retake the course free of charge. Click here to see our pass rates for 2007/8.
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Electrician Apprenticeship
In just 3 years you could be a qualified Electrician, able to earn as much as £30,000 or more and have a career for life too. How does that sound?
Course structure
| Course length | 3 years |
| College time | 1 week in every 4, Mon – Fri 8:45am to 4:30pm for first two years |
| College venues | Southampton and Guildford |
| Intakes start | September, January and April |
| Outcomes | C&G 2330 Technical Certificate levels 2 and 3 C&G 2356 NVQ level 3 in Electrotechnical Services Achievement Measurement 2 (AM2) certificate Certificate in First Aid CSCS Site Safety card |
Fees
None (as long as you are between 16 and 18 years old and qualify within 3 years). If you are over 18 your employer may need to make some contribution towards your training. Please contact the college for more information. If your employer doesn’t provide them, you will need to buy yourself classroom study tools, suitable work-wear, tools to use on-site and codes of practice.
Entry requirements
- Three GCSEs at grade C or better in three subjects, including Maths and English.
- Must have an electrical contractor or company willing to employ you.
- Pass a selection test and interview.
Course overview
The electrotechnical NVQ is designed and developed by close cooperation between the electrotechnical industry, City and Guilds, Summit Skills and the Health and Safety Executive. These groups get together and agree what new entrants need to learn to what standard. What you will study and the standard you have to reach has been prescribed by these groups. The electrotechnical NVQ is divided into ‘units’ of competence, which cover all aspects of work required by an electrical installer.
To achieve your NVQ you will follow a prescribed course of study, which consists of classroom-based activities (theory sessions plus written tests and assessments), workshop activities (practical exercises and assessments) and on-the-job training and assessment. At the outset of the course you will be provided with a scheme of work, which gives you, a complete breakdown of what you will study in each lesson for the whole of your course. It covers the following broad areas:
- Electrical safety
- Working at heights
- Lifting and handling
- PVC, MI and PVCSWA cable installations
- Metal trunking, rigid PVC and steel conduit installation
- Fire alarms
- Cable tray installation
- Testing and inspection
- Fault finding and rectification
In each of the first two years of your course you will attend the college for 24 one-week blocks of 34 hours a week and the rest of the time you will work with your employer on site. While at college you will cover a range of practical and theory sessions according to the course syllabus. Your work will be assessed internally by the college and through external tests. While at work you will receive on-the-job training, gaining valuable experience which will help you build a portfolio of your work necessary to achieve your NVQ.
During the first two years you will complete the City and Guilds 2330 technical certificate in electrical installation work and you may also study key skills which include communication skills, application of number and ICT. In the third year you will take the Achievement Measurement 2 (AM2) test, which is the Practical Performance Assessment that must be passed by apprentices to complete their apprenticeship and NVQ Level 3. During this final year you will also have your work assessed on-site by qualified assessors. By the end of year three, having covered the range of work specified by City & Guilds to the necessary standard you will achieve your City and Guilds 2356 NVQ at Level 3 and become qualified.
More information
For more information about what plumbers do and progression routes click here
