New Career Skills! - HELP!!

[Markss]

Hi All, first post here so please be gentle :smiley2:

i have been thinking for a while now about re-training,after having to turn down a plumbing apprenticeship 8yr ago due to having my first daughter i have always regretted it and wanted to "try" being a plumber.

i work full time and have a family to support so a full time course was never a real option for me and being 28 im too old for an apprenticeship,i rang my local college and they dont offer a part time plumbing course..

this is when i started to look online and came across the NCS website i read it all over and everything looked good booked an appointment with the advisor and signed on to the course yesterday. after he left i had a quick look around online at what sort of stuff i would be doing and upon googling NCS reviews (something i really should have done before jumping in feet first) it bought me to a thread on this forum and quie a few people saying they have been ripped off and never ended up with the qualifications promised!

i have signed up to do the City & Guilds Level 2 NVQ Plumbing and Heating 6189-11. the course is 12-18 month depending how fast you progress, but will i actually finish the course with a qualification that could take me in to a job? they said they cant promise to find me work but 80% of the student do leave with a job from working with a fully qualified plumber for work experience as par of the course.

its costing me £6499 and i really hope im not being ripped off as with a young family its alot of money!

please help/advise if you can.

thanks

 

[Markss]

33 views and no comment.... guess ill just quit as i dont want to get stung.

 

[Masood]

The biggest problem you'll have is finding a plumber to work with, to get your NVQ practical portfolio built up. There is some value in doing the course anyway (but you can do it a LOT cheaper) but you will only get the C&G tech cert without on-site experience. Are they guaranteeing you a placement? If not, think twice..

 

[Dotty]

Have a chat with one of our sponsors - OLCI - OLCI Plumbing Courses, Gas & Electrical Training Courses 0800 058 2848

Or talk to Alana, their rep on UKPF - View Profile: Alana Fox - Plumbing Forum | Plumbing Advice | Plumbers Forums | A forum for plumbers advice in the UK

 

[jam1979]

what is olci like croppie im gonna be doing my 6129 lv3 should I give these a go or go to colledge and do it

 

[gavinwilson]

College will be cheaper than any training centre Lvl 3 was about 1500 quid at Bolton ,you may be entitled to discount if you get working tax credit etc ,worth chatting with them .

 

[Markss]

The biggest problem you'll have is finding a plumber to work with, to get your NVQ practical portfolio built up. There is some value in doing the course anyway (but you can do it a LOT cheaper) but you will only get the C&G tech cert without on-site experience. Are they guaranteeing you a placement? If not, think twice..

thanks for the reply.

the advisor did say after doing a couple of weeks practical work in the training center they asses you on your work and finish and you then move on to work with one of the fully qualified plumbers that work along side the collage happy to take on students. so im guessing this is the NVQ part?

where could i do it cheaper? i didnt even know this forum existed till i searched the NCS reviews or i would have asked questions and done more research before signing on to a course. i have left a £500 deposit but i also get 14 days no questions asked period to cancel the course.

 

[Markss]

thanks for that croppie. would the OLCI be along the same lines as the NCS course? just checked the link you gave me and seems the same course/qualifications but i would rather use a recomended one and as they are a forum sponsor i take it they are all legit.

idealy i would like to take the college route but i have bills and a family to support so dont really have any other option but a home study course

 

[jam1979]

nice 1 gav im from Bolton as well

 

[SimonG]

For crying out loud. Do your homework. OLCI are a sponsor but don't get a very good press, but that's just the comments I see. Two hours, no replies and your going to chuck it, maybe not for you.

People are full of flash in the pan ideas. That's not the issue, the issue is how serious are you. Are you prepared to work for nothing to get experience? No, well that puts you behind the countless who post on here wanting experience for no pay.

If you want it, really really want it (and I'm not a Spice Girls fan) then do your research, work out the impact it will have on yourself and family and then decide.

 

[Killy Bing]

Did a year with no pay.... You gotta be dedicated to get into the industry and also, its not nice work when you start, it really isnt.

As for people looking but not replying, there are hundreds of these posts on the forum.

 

[Markss]

None of the "fast track" courses get a good press which is why i asked about the NCS one,i have read a lot of reviews from people complaining about them and the qualificaions they leave with but most of these seem to be on the 4-10 week courses, im doing the longer 18 month course and hoped a few plumbers on here may have experience with them to help put me at ease a little.

ok maybe i didn't research enough and did rush into it but thats not to say i've not been thinking about it for a while,just always been something holding me back. i work in the gas industry now although not skilled or quaified but i have always wanted to progress further.

and to answer your question i would be happy to work along side someone for free to gain experience and real job knowledge if its something i could do along side work but who would want to take on an un-skilled un experienced 28yr old? just figured my only way of doing this is to pay my way through training. although i said quit i guess i used the wrong words, i didn't mean completely quit persuing a career in plumbing i just meant cancel the course do more research before spending the 6.5k.

the main reason is in the last few year we have been taken over at work by DHL and they are slowly running the company into the ground which has helped give me the kick up the arse i need to persue a trade like i always wanted to instead of keep turning up to the same job,taking the money and moaning about it.

 

[Markss]

Did a year with no pay.... You gotta be dedicated to get into the industry and also, its not nice work when you start, it really isnt.

As for people looking but not replying, there are hundreds of these posts on the forum.

i would work for free as i beleive working along side a skilled experienced person in real life enviroment is the best way to learn,just figured nobody would wan't me. i finish work everyday at 3pm and can free up weekends so maybe thats something to look into.

i did post on a few older threads but though starting my own may get a better response,plus all the threads i found about NCS was just negative feedback which filled me with more doubt about handing them my money.

 

[Killy Bing]

Please take this with a pinch of salt, maybe even a kilo of it.

as far as industrys go the gas, oil, plumbing and heating industrys paying to get into them will cost you far far more than you realise.

this is simply down to experience!
In a working day each of us can make a single mistake and thats 200k of damages and possibly even a life lost.

but by doing time served apprenticeships, working under someone for a long time before even thinking of qualifications, revising, learning gas regs, how gas works, how pressurised symptoms work, combustion, dealing with problems you encounter, learning from your peers, safe working and even just how to use tools.

this is what makes us safe as we can be.
the stigma of fast track engineers is them being newly qualified and overly confident with little experiance of possible problems.

my advice would be is try to find someone you can do a few weekends or evenings with and get a feel for it before parting with money for a course.

 

[Killy Bing]

i would work for free as i beleive working along side a skilled experienced person in real life enviroment is the best way to learn,just figured nobody would wan't me. i finish work everyday at 3pm and can free up weekends so maybe thats something to look into.

i did post on a few older threads but though starting my own may get a better response,plus all the threads i found about NCS was just negative feedback which filled me with more doubt about handing them my money.

ahh thats better!!
driving is a bonus, you could always find an engineer without a licence
Print up leaflets and hand them into local merchants, training centres

state your willing to work evenings for free in exchange for experience.

Experience on the tools will be more useful than any course for the most part.

if its what you want to do then stick at it, look into it.

there wont be any fast route about this

 

[Markss]

to be honest i think it's this that worries me more. i don't want to put money and time into a course and leave not feeling competent enough i would rather work with someone and pick up the skill rather than someone try and cram it into me in a 12 month period.

at work i build + test gas boxes,modules and lpg stuff and although it's nothing major its something i would like to progress in.

thanks for your advice 1king55 for now i will cancel the course and have a good look into what other options i have.

 

[Killy Bing]

A course is great to do (I'm finishing an apprenticeship now)

but in the case you're personally shelling out thousands of pounds then have experience first, that way you're not stuck on the real basic stuff and can learn more of the tricky stuff.

Get some regular work experience and then think about courses.

as for any gas courses, you have to build up an on the job portfolio of work and thats something you cant gain in a classroom (as far as I'm aware)

stick at it

 

[TimeServed]

You certainly seem keen enough but you really need to research the world that is plumbing, also maybe start asking company's if they were to consider employing you if you were able to get your training qualification with your lack of experience.....it's all very well paying £6.5k for some paper, but without the required experience you would struggle with the employers tasks.
You will also need to research how much this is going to cost you, training, tools, massive pay drop for a year or two.

 

[deandive]

Hey markss I did my gas course and acs at olci, and found them to be great, apart from the call centre, it seemed like I had to call back a couple of times to get through to someone competant at times, dont let that put you off though as I found the training to be top notch and the trainers were very knowledgeable. I agree though you need to get in with a local plumber to gain experience on the job and I would get this squared away before you pay out your money This can be a difficult thing to do even if you offer yourself free of charge, and you will need someone to sign off your work to get the full qual and build a gas portfolio if you intend going down that route. Stick at it though changing career was the best thing I did, Ive got far greater earning potential now and more flexibility in how and when I work.