City & Guilds Level 1 Diploma in Electrical Installation

[BarryJ90]

Hi guys

Just wanted a bit of advice regarding the above course and whether I've made the right choice.

I have enrolled on the level 1 rather than any other courses as my local college offers this as a night course which works for me as it means I can still work full time in my current job whilst studying.

My question is once I have completed this level 1 am I qualified to carry out a certain level of work whilst working for a firm or is the course so basic that I would need a level 2 before being able to do that?

Cheers in advance!

 

[paul291277]

I went straight into level 2, I have run your post through spellcheck and yor speling and gramma seam purrfeck which leads me to the conclusion that you are not stupid. Have a look at entry requirements for the level 2 course further out if your local one doesn't do it. It may be an extra 1/2 hrs drive a night but may save you a lot more time than that

 

[BarryJ90]

I went straight into level 2, I have run your post through spellcheck and yor speling and gramma seam purrfeck which leads me to the conclusion that you are not stupid. Have a look at entry requirements for the level 2 course further out if your local one doesn't do it. It may be an extra 1/2 hrs drive a night but may save you a lot more time than that

Haha cheers mate, me old man runs a firm and he was saying that he doesn't know of many people who have started at level 1 which made me wonder whether or not I've made a mistake but at this late stage now I'm unsure as to whether I will be able to get on a level 2 starting next month.

 

[paul291277]

Sorry, went off on a rant about the lvl 1 course rather than answer your question, you are NO LESS QUALIFIED to carry out a certain level of work than if you were lvl 1,2 or 3 qualified person. The regs state that you need to be a competent person. I'm probably going to open up a big debate here but I think you need at least C&G lvl 3, latest regs course (17th ammendment 3 at the mo), and a few years experience to do most work as a competent person. You will then need to do an Inspection and testing course and then join a competent person scheme to actually sign off your work unless you want to pay your local council a fortune each time you do something. To anyone more experienced, does this sound right as I'm currently lvl 3 and have my 17th and am planning my C&G2391 as the next step?

 

[BarryJ90]

Good reply mate and that is exactly the sort of opinion I am looking for. I'm the sort of person who wants to learn as much as possible so I think I will try to progress right through to level 3 but I was confused as to when someone can actually call themselves "qualified" if that makes sense as it's all very vague in my opinion with so many people stating different things.

 

[Joshua]

Good reply mate and that is exactly the sort of opinion I am looking for. I'm the sort of person who wants to learn as much as possible so I think I will try to progress right through to level 3 but I was confused as to when someone can actually call themselves "qualified" if that makes sense as it's all very vague in my opinion with so many people stating different things.

Technically you can call yourself qualified as soon as you've got any sort of qualification, as you're saying you're qualified up to a certain standard.

Most people will agree that to call yourself fully qualified you'd need level 2 and 3 in theory (2365), NVQ Level 3 (2357), 17th Edition (2382-15) and maybe inspection and testing qualifications (2391-52)

But everyone has their own idea of qualified.

The scams call you qualified with the 17th Edition (2382), Building Regs 'Part P' (2393) and fundamental inspection and testing (2392). In my opinion those courses can't make you competent.

I think being qualified should come secondary to being competent. I'd rather hire a guy who's worked alongside a good electrician for 5 years rather than hire a fully qualified 5 week wonder who's never worked a day in their life.

 

[paul291277]

Sadly we need to rely on scams to remain profitable, I'm calling for a revolution

 

[paul291277]

Please exscuse the dreadful Tracey Chapman reference

 

[paul291277]

and the spelling

 

[soms]

It is worth looking at starting with the L2 if you can (I did the EAL version at college), I think it offers a good foundation of knowledge in both terms of the theory and practical skills to allow you to be of use and open opportunities with employers etc.

Unless you enrol on an apprenticeship after your L1 you will be looking to do L2 anyway, and it may well seem repetitive to you as a lot of the practical work will be similar and you will be paying for another years course fee (depending on your age).

I cannot remember the entry requirements, but if you have good GCSE grades in English and Maths you should manage OK with the theory side (the worst part is some rearranging and transposition of formula), which is where the difference in the L1 and L2 is likely to be most apparent.