qualified electrician what next ??

conork92

Just got my papers as a qualified electrician and was let go recently

Sick of site work trunking ,tray , pulling cables etc want to get into something different maybe more specialised cleaner work

What is there to get into maintenance , fire alarms other work like that maybe ??

What courses should i look getting into if i was to do a course ??

Any help would be great

conork92

Anybody ?????

Dr Turk Turkelton

I have come here to expand your horizons mate:
Try the electrical forum.

Boards.ie: Niamh

Moved to Electrical forum, you should get some replies here.

2011

conork92 wrote: »

Just got my papers as a qualified electrician and was let go recently

Sick of site work trunking ,tray , pulling cables etc want to get into something different maybe more specialised cleaner work

This sounds like you are interested in something of a more technical nature.
Is that correct?

What type of experience did you gain as an apprentice, industrial installation type work?
Have you experience in testing or commissioning?
This would stand to you for technical for work of a more technical nature.

What is there to get into maintenance , fire alarms other work like that maybe ??

The role of a maintenance electrician is a very different to that of an electrician that works in the construction sector. Although an individual in each role may have the same basic electrician qualification on paper the skillet required can be very different.

Maintaining a fire alarm system, even a very complex one on a large plant can be very boring in my experience.

What courses should i look getting into if i was to do a course ??

Does instrumentation interest you? It can open a lot of doors.
There are plenty of opportunities abroad if travel interests you.
I kind of fell into that and it led my career in a very different direction.

conork92

2011 wrote: »

This sounds like you are interested in something of a more technical nature.
Is that correct?

What type of experience did you gain as an apprentice, industrial installation type work?
Have you experience in testing or commissioning?
This would stand to you for technical for work of a more technical nature.



The role of a maintenance electrician is a very different to that of an electrician that works in the construction sector. Although an individual in each role may have the same basic electrician qualification on paper the skillet required can be very different.

Maintaining a fire alarm system, even a very complex one on a large plant can be very boring in my experience.



Does instrumentation interest you? It can open a lot of doors.
There are plenty of opportunities abroad if travel interests you.
I kind of fell into that and it led my career in a very different direction.

Yes maybe something more technical everbody can do tray trunking and pull cables i want to get into something different but i dont know whats out there

Yes alot of industrial work and i worked on some esb stations also

I done about a year of testing and mv maintenance and commissiong with a commissioner but i was more helping him than doing the testing myself . I done a good bit of maintenance in factorys , pharmacutical plants , hospitals etc

I wouldnt know much about instrumentation to be honest iv heard about it before might be worth while looking into it

I dont really know whats out there and whats worth getting into to be honest

Thanks for the reply

solargain

Go get a job as an electrician for now , the most dangerous electricians are the ones just out of their time , you need experience under your belt. You have not got that yet. You could also look at the modules the institutes of technology run by night , in industrial instrumentation, scada , plcs, mechatronics , robotics the list is endless. You need to find something you like. Your other option is to go back and do the electrical engineering degree course , you will need to do a bridging course in Maths to bring your level of maths up , you will get an exemption into second year based on your qualifications. The studying is only beginning now you are qualified

2011

solargain wrote: »

Your other option is to go back and do the electrical engineering degree course , you will need to do a bridging course in Maths to bring your level of maths up , you will get an exemption into second year based on your qualifications.

This depends very much on the course.
Most electrical engineering degrees will not allow exemptions from 1st year only on the basis of being a qualified electrician. This is mainly because there is surprisingly little overlap between the two in most cases. There are exceptions to this, but not many.

solargain

Well Cit do on to the electrical engineering course and so do DIT at Bolton Street , but you have to do a maths bridging course. There is also an option to do the Electrical Marine Qualification which gives you a licence to go to sea as an electrician , it can be done through the NMCI

2011

solargain wrote: »

Well Cit do on to the electrical engineering course and so do DIT at Bolton Street

They do, this is why I said there are exceptions (mainly electrical services type courses). This is not the norm. Most electrical engineering courses will not permit anyone from skipping 1st year on the basis that they are a qualified electrician.

solargain

They are not letting anybody skip , there is such a thing as RPL (Recognition for Prior Learning).

Its allowed for on most courses if what you have previously done and you have received an approved qualification in it and its relevant to the subject you are now pursuing or if there is an overlap between the two, then they give credits for RPL .

2011

solargain wrote: »

They are not letting anybody skip , there is such a thing as RPL (Recognition for Prior Learning).

Most won't let people skip first year just because they are an electrician with good reason. In my case I was only exempt from one small module in 1st year.

Its allowed for on most courses if what you have previously done and you have received an approved qualification in it and its relevant to the subject you are now pursuing or if there is an overlap between the two, then they give credits for RPL .

Absolutely correct.

However most electrical engineering degrees have very little overlap with the syllabus covered during an electrical apprnntship. If you look at the modules you will see why this is the case.

Tuco88

I think you need an overall merit also in phase 4 and 6 electrical blocks for C.I.T. to jump year 1?

2011

Tuco88 wrote: »

I think you need an overall merit also in phase 4 and 6 electrical blocks for C.I.T. to jump year 1?

No idea, but in DIT almost nobody does year 1 of the electrical services ordinary level degree. It is essentially regarded as a 2 year course aimed at electricians.

solargain

In the Cit Electrical Engineering Degree Course each applicant is assessed on their Phase 6 results and RPL is given accordingly depending on the ability/ weakness of the student .
In general the electricians that go back to do it are more mature , focused and come out top of the class and are snapped up straight away as soon as they qualify.

Stoner

2011 wrote:

However most electrical engineering degrees have very little overlap with the syllabus covered during an electrical apprnntship. If you look at the modules you will see why this is the case.

I'd agree there is very little overlap. Kevin street set up a whole course for this though. Electricians can skip first year as a result very few can enter first year as the numbers boost so much in second year. It is a level 7 / pass degree, the route to a full level 8 degree would be difficult from here, they have a one year Bsc in energy management that many follow up with for a level 8 qualification although its not recognized by the iei as an engineering qualification but it is a level 8 honours degree.

Paul_Mc1988

Stoner wrote: »

I'd agree there is very little overlap. Kevin street set up a whole course for this though. Electricians can skip first year as a result very few can enter first year as the numbers boost so much in second year. It is a level 7 / pass degree, the route to a full level 8 degree would be difficult from here, they have a one year Bsc in energy management that many follow up with for a level 8 qualification although its not recognized by the iei as an engineering qualification but it is a level 8 honours degree.

IMO IEI recognition of level 8 courses has lost its value since they changed there charter-ship requirements. I did a relatively new engineering degree where i did two years for my level 7 as i was previously an electrician.. I have now skipped the honours degree and am doing an accredited masters degree. Wasn't the whole point of doing an accredited degree so that if you wished to become chartered you could?

2011

Paul_Mc1988 wrote: »

Wasn't the whole point of doing an accredited degree so that if you wished to become chartered you could?

No, it was never the "whole point".
An accredited degree is taken far more seriously by employers.
There are plenty of degrees out there that are it worth the paper they are written on.

Two Sheds

conork92 wrote: »

Just got my papers as a qualified electrician and was let go recently

Sick of site work trunking ,tray , pulling cables etc want to get into something different maybe more specialised cleaner work

What is there to get into maintenance , fire alarms other work like that maybe ??

What courses should i look getting into if i was to do a course ??

Any help would be great

There's a lot more to being an electrician than site work as described and it's an indictment of our apprenticeship system than anybody (not you) can finish their time with so little knowledge of the scope of their trade. Too many apprentices are used as cheap labour, especially by the bigger companies, and little regard is shown for their proper training.
All this happens under Solas, who still seem to believe that turning out single-skill tradesmen should qualify as a proper apprenticeship.

Apprentices should be exposed to virtually all aspects of their trade and if this means changing employers on several occasions then Solas should get the finger out and organise it.

Dufftronic

From my own experience i think the best skill you can have to accompany your papers is PLC programming. Siemens S7 being the most widespread, Allen Bradley RS Logix some distance behind. After that i would look into robotics although tbh you're not going to have many places in Ireland that utilise robots. I've been upskilling in both these areas in my current job and it makes your day to day so much more interesting. I hope you get what you are looking for.

Best of luck to you.

Tibulus

conork92 wrote: »

i worked on some esb stations also

I done about a year of testing and mv maintenance and commissiong with a commissioner but i was more helping him than doing the testing myself . I done a good bit of maintenance in factorys , pharmacutical plants , hospitals etc


Thanks for the reply

This is some really top level experience to have, not that many people out there with HV exposure.

Would HV commissioning interest you?

I see Enercon are regularly looking for electricians with HV experience. How far would your experience extend?

-Could you follow a HV switchgear schematic?
-Do you understand a CT secondary circuit?

Really think the commissioning route a an amazing opportunity if you can find an employer willing to train you. I know that there are companies including ESBI screaming out for commissioners. Currently have a contract commissioner making 500GBP per day in Scotland!

How about HV cable jointing / terminations?

I know that ESBN are gearing up to undertake a new framework next year and wind farms are pushing ahead, will be a busy time for HV electricians. Could progress to PICW.

On the note of college courses DIT run 2 level 7 courses, both with options to enter into 2nd year:
-DT009 - Electrical Engineering -
-DT010 - Electrical Services Engineering -

With either course you can progress to accredited level 8 BEng course. But would need to be close to Dublin city center.