Carpenters mate v apprenticeship query ?

[TomP]

Hi,

I'm looking into a career in carpentry/ joinery. My first thought is to look into getting an apprenticeship, however the potential apprentice rate of pay is making me question whether it would be viable as i am finishing uni so will have overheads such as rent, bills etc to cover.

My second thought would be to look into getting work as a carpenters mate and doing a part time college course.

My query is would this be regarded as high in terms of qualification as doing an apprenticeship, in the eyes of employers once i have completed the course. Or is the most proper way to gain the qualification to do an apprenticeship?

Hope that makes sense

Tom

 

[sunnybob]

you need to be a bit more specific.
Shop fitting carpentry?
general building industry carpentry?
Furniture?
They all have different ways in.

 

[Peter Sefton]

Hi Tom and welcome to the forum.

You may want to have a chat with your local college, I believe they are loosing funding for courses with the money being redirected towards apprenticeships,but this could be last weeks education plan!!!!! You may not find a suitable course that suits your needs in the current climate.

As for qualifications I doubt if many carpenters (employers) would be that fussed about you having formal qualifications in the long run, if you can prove you can work to good standards and quickly this is what they would be most interested in, I assume the college part will give you the health and safety aspects you require to work on larger sites.

Let us know how you get on, cheers Peter

 

[TomP]

thanks for the responses,

Ive found a college offering site carpentry and bench joinery courses, full time and part time.

I've contacted them about apprenticeships, which they said all i need to do is find an employer for the apprenticeship then they can proceed with an application on either of them courses.

In reality is an apprenticeship, or working as a mate then doing the same qualification any different?

 

[RobinBHM]

This difference is that if you do a college NVQ, you will be day release or block release and your employer may not pay for those days. Also as an apprentice you may struggle to get a decent wage as many employers will consider that having an apprentice is time consuming.

A trainee carpenter on site would get a labourers wage, which around the South East may be between £50 -£100 per day. If you can get yourself skilled enough to cover a basic range of tasks and can prove to be hard working and responsible you will soon be in demand for working in a team on site. There is a real shortage of really good young guys around.

You need both college training and on the job training to get fully trained and ideally done both together.

 

[TomP]

Thats my thoughts,

Ive spoken to someone who i went to school with and started apprenticeship at 16. He said he found it hard to find employers who would take on an apprentice.

Also a slightly better wage of being a mate/trainee would make it more viable for me to get into the trade. I already have some experience in the area and my own tools so would like to think i wouldn't be a burden on a tradesman that stereotypically a new apprentice may be.