Good afternoon, before I start I appreciate I may be on a hiding to nothing here but here goes. I spent time working as a tradesman with my Dad back when I was 16 but lacked the foresight to see it through, and ended up working in IT for the last 15 years. However, I've got to a point where I have zero passion for the job and there has been a desire to get a trade behind me and eventually operate my own business.
I've settled on plumbing as it appeals to my analytical mind, and appears to be a varied and interesting job. However, I'm under no illusions at all that this will take a lot of hard work and graft(something I am prepared to do!) but also need to couple this with realism and ask myself......am I too old to be considering it? I'm interested to hear of any success stories people have had entering this industry later on in life so that I can take some inspiration. The key questions I have are:
1) After an initial look at these fast track courses, it appears like they are a waste of money and I can see why in that you can't learn a trade in the time it says you can...it would be insulting to say otherwise. However, does anyone have any success stories of going on any of these courses?
2) If the fast track courses aren't any good.....at my age, what options do I have? In the ideal world I'd do an apprenticeship over a number of years but I my age, finances are going to come into play. Now I'm not saying I want to fast track anything, but are there other reputable options out there which I can do?
3) From my research so far(correct me if I'm wrong!) I'd need an NVQ Level 2 in order to operate as a Plumber.....however, should I be looking at any other courses prior to doing this, or would I jump straight into it?(I appreciate I'd need to work with someone in order to do this)
4) I'm prepared for the long haul with this one, and to put myself out there(unpaid) for a period of time as a plumbers mate so that I can watch, learn, ask questions etc. However, I want to make sure that alongside this I am also getting the qualifications I need.
Apologies for this being a bit long-winded.....I knew this wouldn't be easy and appreciate there is a lot of work that needs to go into these things, but at the moment it feels like whichever way I turn the door is firmly shut, so I'm hoping for some positive comments and inspiration.
Cheers
Andy
I've settled on plumbing as it appeals to my analytical mind, and appears to be a varied and interesting job. However, I'm under no illusions at all that this will take a lot of hard work and graft(something I am prepared to do!) but also need to couple this with realism and ask myself......am I too old to be considering it? I'm interested to hear of any success stories people have had entering this industry later on in life so that I can take some inspiration. The key questions I have are:
1) After an initial look at these fast track courses, it appears like they are a waste of money and I can see why in that you can't learn a trade in the time it says you can...it would be insulting to say otherwise. However, does anyone have any success stories of going on any of these courses?
2) If the fast track courses aren't any good.....at my age, what options do I have? In the ideal world I'd do an apprenticeship over a number of years but I my age, finances are going to come into play. Now I'm not saying I want to fast track anything, but are there other reputable options out there which I can do?
3) From my research so far(correct me if I'm wrong!) I'd need an NVQ Level 2 in order to operate as a Plumber.....however, should I be looking at any other courses prior to doing this, or would I jump straight into it?(I appreciate I'd need to work with someone in order to do this)
4) I'm prepared for the long haul with this one, and to put myself out there(unpaid) for a period of time as a plumbers mate so that I can watch, learn, ask questions etc. However, I want to make sure that alongside this I am also getting the qualifications I need.
Apologies for this being a bit long-winded.....I knew this wouldn't be easy and appreciate there is a lot of work that needs to go into these things, but at the moment it feels like whichever way I turn the door is firmly shut, so I'm hoping for some positive comments and inspiration.
Cheers
Andy
