so you're leaving school and you've decided that you think you want to become an electrician and
that all sounds great in your own mind however it's not just about thinking about being an
electrician when you leave school you've also got to do what benefits and work experience to know
that you like what you're actually going to do rather than just going into the job and not doing
it absolutely Ben's been working with me for about six months now it's only 15 years old you're still
at school and you're okay and he said to his mum I think I want to be an electrician and then she
came to me she cuts my hair every four weeks so we've spent some time over the last little while
working together and I think the first thing I said to you was you know you want to be something
there's a big difference between wanting to be something and actually being something so you took
your first work experience with Marcus didn't you put in some practical work and had a look at her
until I do lights and stuff like that gave your golden opportunity then even before you've left
school to think if this is really really what I want to do the first thing I always suggest
to everyone is do some work experience I know it can be difficult especially at 15 years old get
the cash in some friends and family to do that that's really important now it could be that you
want to be an electrician and you're struggling to get some work experience okay what other things
have you added to your CV that suggests when I interview someone that you actually want to be
an electrician doing some certificates to let them know that you're actually willing to learn
and willing to do what you've said you want to do yeah so when you say certificates Ben means the
ones that are on The eFIXX Apprentice Hub yeah so we've got the know how tab you need to find
it by directly on the know how tab where you can find it through The eFIXX Apprentice Hub and in
there is some certificates to take how long does it take roughly to get half an hour yeah half an
hour to an hour maybe maximum an hour yeah to get to get a certificate off and all of a sudden your
CV which currently looks awful doesn't it yeah okay you emailed it again to me last night it's
very generic it's a it's a vanilla two pages isn't it it says I work hard and I'm dedicated and all
those lovely buzzwords doesn't scream of all of the electrician as we develop your CV through to
hopefully when you do eventually either start a college course or you get an apprenticeship what
things does your CV really need to focus on if you want to be an electrician let's focus on the stuff
about being an electrician not other stuff like every their life like what you're doing your spare
time yeah no one's interested in lots of ways if you like Minecraft a little dig there I doubt he
likes Minecraft but Ben it's all about you know I want to be an electrician so those additional
certificates anyone can get put them on the CV can't they and you're up to how many now
thirteen thirteen because I said you only had two didn't you on the CV you sent me last night you
only got two on there you've now got 13. there was a reward for that wasn't it you're gonna get some
tools off me for for getting to 13. so all of a sudden now I'm thinking when you sit in front of
me maybe you've got to do a year at college you never know so you're sitting in front of me and
you say I want to be an electrician you're going to show me the work experience you did when you're
at school you're going to show me a minimum of 13 certificates that are electrically biased yeah am
I now as keen about looking at your GCSEs or is it more electrically focused more electrically
focused because it shows you've gone out of your way to do the electrical stuff yeah and maths
and English what are you going to get GCSE wise five and then that's and I think it was a five
in English yeah and you need both you need you need them above fours in your maths and English
in order to do an apprenticeship um as part of the standards okay it used to be a framework
Inspire the standards so of course it's vitally important that you get those as well but just
think about that CV is what I say to everybody and does it lose or want to be an electrician
other things that can suggest that you want to be electricians is following people on YouTube
isn't so you can follow all those electrically biased channels on YouTube start watching what
electrician does in the day if you can't go and do any work experience you've got those certificates
do you do much electrical work at school is there anything in this plug tops or anything like that
no just physics and things like that so again it is difficult is it to say yes when I leave school
I want to be an electrician so top tips for me get some work experience get some additional
certificates on there and have photographs on your CV what sort of photographs are going to add to
yours photographs of you and photographs of work you've done so let's show that what you're capable
of and what you've already tried to do yeah I'm a great believer in the two-page one they want
you to make at school and college isn't enough we love pictures now we all love videos and things
like that let's have let's have a load of pictures on there that suggest you want to be electrician
maybe it's your college work if you're at college pictures of the jobs you're doing at college
you're not at college yet you're obviously looking for a job so there's pictures of you doing your
work experience but that can become overpowering it can be too many pictures you can be a bit
concerned can you remember what I asked you to set up to store your pictures um and Instagram
account um to follow and to follow certain people so certain people see it yeah so I would say to
set up a private Instagram sorry as in away from your you and your mates yeah yeah acting silly
um away from your friends and just do it as an electrical trainee because then you can post all
your photographs on there but also you can start following local electricians yeah and National
electricians you can start asking questions and hopefully you can use that to get yourself some
more work experience and or job yeah do you think you want to be electrician yeah and what did you
do today what were we up to we've done some light fittings and changing lights yeah so we took these
old um halogen ones down to the 50 watts each and we replaced them with LEDs first time you
ever fitted a light fitting in yeah how many did you fit today three or four four I think I did
two didn't I yeah so one yeah the six that we've replaced again it's great groundwork experience
and if you don't like it so you've got on work experience and you don't like it what does that
mean I mean is it just just say that you don't want to do it you don't have to be forced until
you don't don't want to do and when when we say force force is probably a strong word always think
sometimes it's mum dad grown-up carer at home that says to you they wish they'd have a trade
when they left school and they sort of employ it unto you was it your idea or your family it was
your idea okay so we're already on a winner you've already got 13 certificates you've done some work
experience it's got a right wift Ben and actually you want to be an electrician so there's some good
advice from Ben we've had a little uh little fun today fitting those LED light fittings so
and recap them work on your CV add in pictures create an Instagram account do some additional
certificates on The eFIXX Apprentice Hub via the know how tab and see if you really want to do it
and you tick all of those boxes I would suggest like Ben you probably want to be electrician