Electrical Apprenticeships in NZ (Part 1): Pre-Trade + Company Contract

Weighing up your options when starting an electrical apprenticeship is important. This is just one route you can take to doing an Electrical Apprenticeship. If you haven’t read the basics yet, check out Electrical Apprenticeships in NZ: The Basics (Start Here).

Disclaimer:This is my own experience only, please seek official advice from an apprenticeship body. Going down this path gave me the skills and flexibility in my contracts. I learned a huge variety of things from doing fast-paced work and switching job sites regularly.

Step 1: Pre-Trade

A Pre-Trade Course is a separate study that covers the NZQA Electrical Engineering (Level 3) Certificate. It is a private course that you pay for. It takes about half a year to a year to complete, depending if you do part-time or full-time study.

Pre-Trade is Optional. No, you don’t have to do it in order to get an apprenticeship. Some companies like it. Many people don’t and still get a contract. Yes, you can skip this step since it is expensive – check out my other article.

No, completing Pre-Trade does not automatically knock two years off your apprenticeship. Your employer chooses to sign off your paperwork when you are deemed competent. It’s unlikely you will finish a whole apprenticeship in 2 years.

Pre-Trade is not for everyone. Pre-Trade is expensive, and not everyone is good at sitting in a classroom learning Theory. You have to make sure that you enroll in a good institution.

Pre-Trade is what you make it. Ask Questions. Don’t sleep in class. Make the most of your teacher’s experience in the field.

You will pass the NZQA Electrical Engineering (Level 3) Certificate requirement. If you study of course, you will walk out with a certificate. Bring this to your Apprenticeship Training Provider when you sign on.

Night School does shorten. Upon completing the certificate, you only need to attend night class for one year – provided it is from a recognised institution. There is a time limit on when some Apprenticeship Training Providers recognise your certificate so don’t leave It for too long. You will do the NZQA Electrical Engineering (Level 4) Certificate.

Some institutions that offer accredited pre-trade include NZMA and Unitec. Their intakes are twice a year.

Personally I did pre-trade to test the waters. Being in my late 20’s I didn’t have time to waste on figuring out if an apprenticeship was worth it. My training was 8 months, and my Pre-Trade teacher was a very experienced Electrician. I was able to work part-time jobs as a contracted out book-keeper.

Disclaimer: I did this at a time when the government rolled out a nation-wide program subsiding training costs. I did mine for free. You may still be able to apply for some grants.

Step 2: Company Contract & On-Job Learning

Next, you have to get employed as an Apprentice. You’re going to be employed directly by your company directly i.e. You’re ‘one of the boys’.

This means:

• You negotiate your pay.
• You are responsible for getting your Training Limited Certificate with EWRB.
• You are responsible for your apprenticeship contract.
• You have to make sure all of your on-job paperwork is signed off.

For getting a job, I’ve written an entire article on Applying for an Apprenticeship: Step-by-Step here.

Yes, you can change companies and supervisors if you no longer want to work for them. This does not restart your apprenticeship. You just need to re-sign your EWRB Supervisor Declaration Form for your licence.

I was able to control my employment contracts and change companies multiple times. I found that being hired directly by a company gave me flexibility, and better hourly rates than a lot of my friends. I was seen as a team member, rather than being treated as outsourced labour.

For On-Job paperwork:

• You will be paying Tuition fees: Your Training Provider marks your On-Job assessments. You will pay a weekly fee for four years, or until you are signed off as competent.
• Ensure that all of your On-Job paperwork is signed off, amended and marked.
• Ensure that your company has a variety of work available over the next 4 years:

Step 3: Training Provider Contract (ETCO/Te Pukenga) & Off-Job Learning.

You’ll have to sign on with a Training Provider to ensure that your night school is completed. Usually companies have a preferred night school provider (most being Skills/ETCO) but you can go out and choose.

You will have to:

• Pay weekly fees to your education provider for all four years: Yes even if you finish night school, they are still marking your on-jobs. So finish as fast as you can.
• Attend Night School for a Year: This is provided that you enrol in time for an intake and pass. You’ll complete the NZQA Electrical Engineering (Level 4) Certificate. Class is either once a week at night, or once every fortnight during the day. Your employer decides when you attend.
• Attend Yearly Block Courses: This a course that lasts for a week. Some employers will pay you to go, some will require you to take holiday pay.

I averaged out my night school fees to be around $3,500 NZD per year. I was signed on with Skills (later merged with ETCO). Yes, it’s expensive, but much cheaper than the combined $35,000 NZD for my two four-year conjoint Bachelor Degrees.

In my case, I would not owe money if I chose quit my apprenticeship. (If you don’t pay your due fees then yes, you owe them money) Payments are usually done on a weekly basis. The amount is subject to yearly change. Please contact your co-ordinator for advice.

No, usually you cannot change providers once you start. Many organisations will not recognise your prior experience. If you’re lucky, you may get to do extra classes to cross credit to another program. Usually you may start all over again. Please contact your co-ordinator for advice.

Intakes are generally twice a year, and yes, they may forget to enrol you. Generally this is around February and June. So please keep up-to-date with your paperwork, and communicate with your assigned Training Co-ordinator. Make that phone call.

I almost missed the first night class intake in my first year. The admin person forgot to enrol me. Yes. They forgot. I had to call them multiple times. Please keep on top of your paperwork.

You’re at the end…