Top Ten Do’s and Don’ts For Electrical Apprentices
Getting an apprenticeship is a massive achievement and the last thing anyone wants is to then lose it for no good reason. Here we will list some of our tops tips from our own experience as electrical apprentices and fully qualified sparks with apprentices of our own!
Things To Do As An Apprentice
Good Timekeeping
Make sure you are on time or early to every day. This can mean getting the bus to wherever is closest to meet the van or it can mean meeting at depot every day. The last thing that your qualified electrician will want to do is wait for you! I remember having to do that and time is money
Ask Questions
I don’t know what you don’t know. So as your qualified electrician I may set you a task that you don’t fully understand. Make sure to clarify it in a way that works for your brain, this is cheaper then you doing something wrong and me having to fix it.
Stay Up To Date
College will teach you a lot of the foundations that you will need but keep seeking up to date information. One way is to attend trade shows and another easy way is to follow experts on social media platforms. You can even include reading industry specific publications - this then links to your off the job hours!
Off The Job Hours
Possibly the worst name for your learning journal, but you will need to enter a certain number of hours each week or month of your apprenticeship this is part of your funding criteria with the government.
Tools Need To Be Looked After
Your tools are your livelihood and nobody else’s responsibility but yours. So keep them clean and secure - this will come up in your portfolio so its a good practice to get into.
Learn From Mistakes
Some of the best lessons I have learned have been on-site with mistakes! Have a listen to Thomas Nagy on Fix radio here, this is proof! Every error is a chance to improve and pick up some additional skills in the meantime
Make Friends With The Smart One In Class
No word of a lie people assume being the only female was hard in college, whereas I studied so hard all the time that I always got the highest score. So basically I gained lots of friends quick quickly. Now when I teach apprentices and see some of them chatting and not making progress I can predict who will complete their course or who will go over time or even not complete at all.
Get A Study Space At Home
I will say this until I am blue in the face but a dedicated space at home is so important. Studying can really take off when you train yourself for getting into the right mood by going to the kitchen table and clearing a little space for example.
Respect The Hierarchy On-Site
I cannot emphasise this enough but you are on the start of a great career. A job title will not always tell you how skilled or experienced someone is, so take a moment to be respectful to everyone on site but pay attention to who calls the shots.
Plan For Your Future
Even from day one of your apprenticeship you will be exposed to possible career pathways for the future. Keep your options open and think about what next and where you see yourself developing.
Things You Don’t Do As An Apprentice
Try To Run Before You Can Walk
If you are unsure of a job or feel nervous about completing it alone ask for help. You are there to learn and not run jobs immediately. When you have some more experience you can smash it for sure but to begin with get into the practice of asking more questions observing or shadowing the qualified electrician, all those good things.
Keep Things To Yourself
Your college or training provider will give you a training officer who will work with you and your employer. They are a mix of that all important support and kick up the butt when you need it. There are also charities specific to our industry who will have ways to help you.
Take Things Too Personally
Work site banter is key to enjoying your time in construction, however it can go too far. Just make sure you are in on the joke and have a way to join in and this will be the best way to improve your own sense of humour
Ignore Health and Safety
Safe isolation is one area that is non-negotiable but I will admit that you will see qualified electricians ignoring this! Included in this would be good housekeeping! Tidy as you go, for yourself and others.
Fall Into Bad Habits
This falls into the safe isolation category. But on a very basic level you want to be the first with the broom in their hand and the first to grab the tester from the van.
Ignore The Site Specific Rules
You may feel that one site is the same as the next but each will have their own singing in or parking processes. Even locking off sheets sometimes.
Treat College As A Day Off
The whole mantra of an apprenticeship is that you earn as you learn. So basically you are being paid to go to college, therefore treat it like a days work and represent your company appropriately.
Take Criticism personally
This is harder said than done as you know as an apprentice the qualified electrician is there to help you, but when you feel you have done a good job and it is picked apart it is frustrating. Once you get into the mindset of continual improvement though this will really help!
Forget That You Are A Professional
I will hold my hands up and say that it can be easy to get carried away with banter on site and forget that you are wearing the company logo and you represent them at all times. My advice is to try and keep your behaviour appropriate to each situation.
Assume The Grass Is Always Greener
I work with so many apprentices who think that their current job isn’t as well paid or as exciting as their mates. This isn’t always true and if you want to know the JIB minimum wages have a look here, but also try to take into account all of the other benefits of your current employer before leaving.
Apprentice Electrician Tips
My final thoughts on this are to say that you earned your place as an apprentice, so now you can enjoy it. As long as you know that this will never be a nine to five and there will always be more to learn then you will be grand.
We hope that you do well on your learning journey and that this is just the start of a wonderful career in the electrical industry!