jimcz

Thanks for your quick reaction. I think you're right, I must have misunderstood the info on their website. I don't have local cer 3 but I have A grade licence and ARTC. I'm gonna contact them if it's enough or if they recognize foreign diplomas. Thanks again for the clarification.

Deyan

ARTC and an A grade licence are enough. They are probably going to ask you about your background eg are you domestic sparky or construction-industrial because the price of the training depends of that. For example on the College of electrical training CET over here price for construction/industrial sparkies is $1650, for domestic sparkies $5000 (subsidised or non-subsidised fees).

sparkatrician

Certificate III instrumentation was at Petersham TAFE in Sydney

Certificate III is more highly regarded than Certificate IV.

Conoco Philips and Esso recently advertised Offshore E+I Jobs and Cert III was essential as well as Cert IV.

Cert III is a trade level qualification whereas Cert IV is a bolt on to exisiting skills. IE Existing Cert III Electrotechnology.

QGC also only employ there "own" ie employed by QGC not labour hire "Kentz" E+I Guys and they must have Cert III.

Cert III requires a log book an x amount of time spent doing practical elements like calibration, tube bending etc etc. The practical element to Cert IV is pretty limited in comparison.

Deyan

So you're telling us that a person (like jimcz) with a Certificate III Electrotechnology or ARTC + A grade licence should do again 4 years apprenticeship Cert III Instrumentation, not a cert IV?

sparkatrician

No

He doesn't have to.

He can do Cert III as I did and be RPLd for about 3/4 of the units through his cert III Electrotechnology.

He will then needs x amount of site hours superivsed working on istrumentation and to complete a log book.

After this he gets a Cert III Instrumentation & Control.

If he doesn't want to do that he could just do cert IV.

It's up to him.

I don't know the situation on the west coast but here in the east the dual trade apprentices complete Cert III Electrotechnology and Cert III Instrumentation & Control. The apprenticeship is Five years as the addtional year is spent completing the additional I&C modules and getting the log book hours.

My point basically is C4 is a decent qualification but on all the jobs I've been on to be recognised as dual trade E+I you needed the C3 I&C to be recognised as a "proper" instro.

C4 guys are\were seen as "johnny come latelys".

Again this is just what i have experienced on site and not my opinion as I completed C4 before C3.

Deyan

Ah ok, it's totally different on the west coast. I couldn't find an RTO who's offering cert III Instrumentation in WA.
Friend of mine finished cert IV and he's got decent and good paid job in Karratha, getting over $4000 weekly (after tax), doing 2:2 roster. But again, it's probably different on the east cost.

sparkatrician

Even time roster and $4k after tax....

Good work if you can get it!......

Is it a construction or maintenance gig?.

Deyan

Maintenance. I have no idea how he's got it without previous experience as an instro sparkie, lucky Irish

sparkatrician

It's the blarney.....:-p

To be fair some of the best instros i have worked with out here are Irish.

I think they can choose instrumentation as an elective during there apprenticeship or summat.

Don't know how it is at your end but over here construction rosters are generally rubbish.

22/6 and 19/5 being the ones I've done recently.

Deyan

That's not bad, over here the best one is 26:9 on Barrow Island, all the rest are 28:7, take it or leave it. Plenty of Kiwies don't mind long rosters.

weegogs

Hi Guys

I've just completed the cert 4 instro course in brissy with Future Skills, It was a complete waste of time and money, the course was over 3 weeks but is so rushed you barely learn anything, Of the 12 that started the course 4 walked out by the end, and of the 8 that were left I'd say only 1 would be deemed competent as he had prior knowledge of instro work.

Weeks 1&2 were mainly theory will very little practical, prob about 5 hours if your lucky, week 3 is plc's

The prac in weeks 1&2 revolve around using a hart controller but as we had no time to learn the controller, no one knew how to use it properly yet we were all deemed competent by the assessor.

Week 3 plc was a nightmare, 3 days of information bombardment then 2 days exam, this is when guys started walking out, if you fell behind at all you got left, the instructor wasn't stopping for anything.

The 2 day exam involved writing 3 programs but by 11am on day 2 no-one had even completed 1 program.

When we complained about it the instructor was encouraging us to complain at the highest level, it was then it became clear that we were merely pawns in a fight between the instructors who were telling their bosses the course couldn't be done in 3 weeks and their bosses who said that it could, at the end of course satisfaction survey he was encouraging everyone to be brutally honest and to also write emails to his boss to complain.

Its cost me a lot of money and time of work and I feel we were just pawns in a game.

Shame on you FUTURE SKILLS.

jimcz

Hi, thanks for sharing your experience. I'm actually thinking about getting the certificate as well but I haven't decided where yet. However, I didn't know that there was any such short course as the one you've just finished. Can I ask you how much you paid for it?

Alright, you say you haven't learn much but it could help you in getting a better job anyway, couldn't it?

Deyan

I don't believe in short courses anymore. I've done exactly the same with Hazardous Areas Cert IV, 5 days intensive + gap + 3 days intensive. At the end of the course I couldn't say I am competent for the job.

For the Instro I decided to go with a local Challenger TAFE, the theory part I'll be doing on my own, theory assessments in the class and the practical part over couple of weeks in the class. For all of this you will have up to 12 months.

Current price is around $1700 if you're sparky employed in industrial/construction industry (not domestic sparky)

weegogs

Hi i paid $500 and used my jetco training fund for the rest of the fee. I'm not sure if it will help as I'm in a bit of a catch 22, I committed 3 weeks time and lost earnings etc and so I'm hoping I'll get my certificate but i know that I'm not competent in instr to go out on the park and do instr work, What is annoying is its the inadequate training that is to blame for this.