National Careers Week is an opportunity to support young people in positive career choices for their future in the electrical industry. The theme of this year’s National Careers Week, which runs from 3-8 March is ‘You Can’.
When leaving education, it can be difficult to know what route is best to take to reach your full potential and work toward a career. NAPIT wants to highlight that becoming an electrician can lead to many different career options and opportunities.
Andrew Duffen first stepped into the electrical industry straight from school as an apprentice and he is now a Technical Commercial Engineer at NAPIT.
“Don’t underestimate your limits,” he says. “When I was in school, I wasn’t very academic, and I now work in a very technical world, I’ve done all my electrical qualifications, in fact there’s one qualification left as part of my own CPD.”
Andrew’s journey
“I did my apprenticeship at a company in Birmingham, became a qualified electrician and worked my way through the company to become an approved electrician. I used to do a lot of the inspection and testing for the company.
“There was a broad range of work – new-build houses, commercial new builds, student accommodation, luxury flats, factories, hospitals. We also got into solar farms, I was lucky enough to work on large solar farms, when the Feed In Tariff came in.”
After 19 years that job came to an end in 2017 when the business folded. Andrew remained on the tools for a short time but wanted to take on new opportunities.
He continues, “By that stage I was in my 30s, I had been doing on-site work since I was 16.
“I fancied a change, I worked with a lot of apprentices during my time at the company, helping and training them and my wife said to me why don’t you get into training?”
He started looking for something new and landed a role as an electrical tutor at a local college. Andrew was advised to go to college and get a teaching qualification, which he describes as one of the hardest things he has ever done in his career.
“You need to understand how to teach and the theories behind it. I got the role and when you work at a further education provider at college, within two years of starting the role you have to get a teaching qualification.
“That was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. It was scary and daunting and I had to do it during COVID-19 when teaching was online and you didn’t have that classroom support.”
After four years as a tutor, an opportunity came at NAPIT, which saw Andrew join the Technical Team in summer 2024.
Advice for aspiring electricians
With the skills gap high on the agenda and the government’s push on renewables, the next generation of electricians and installers should explore the growth opportunities provided by the transition to net zero.
Andrew has given some top tips for young people looking to start an apprenticeship. He emphasised how competitive the market is for an apprenticeship and shared how young people can stand out.
He says, “I am a big apprenticeship fan – you earn and you learn, you’re learning on site, and you understand how electricity is generated and how it is transferred through the network systems, you understand that process.
“You’re working in the industry and you go to college so you get learn the theory as well what you learn on site.
“In the electrical world, you can’t know enough, there’s always going to be changes and you’ve got to be constantly evolving. The best bit of advice I was given was if you stand still, you get left behind.”
Top tips to getting your electrical apprenticeship
- Go to your local college and enroll on an electrical course.
- Get a part time job to develop your employability skills.
- Make sure your CV is up to date.
- Set up a social media page separate to your personal one so you can showcase the work you do at college. A lot of electricians now use social media for advertising and it’s a good way to network.
- Offer work experience by reaching out to qualified electricians who are competent and certified.