getting a full licence in qld...
 

Hey all,

This question is firstly asking anyone who has got there full licence what is required as Ive rang the local Tafe and they say all I need is a log book with about 12 entries and then to sit an exam. Is this true?

Secondly what are the main differences that you need to know between an English electrician and Ozzy? Ive been here a while now and can't really see much difference...

Any help is more than appreciated :thumbsup:

Cheers
James

Re: getting a full licence in qld...
 

Hi james
im also going to be needing a full unrestricted qld licence soon. im still in the UK till i complete my assesment at future skills. once i have that im there!!!

but as far as getting the full licence thats what i understood you needed to do. gap training course in tafe and a log book (for 12 months i heard!!!!).

have you already found work?

it would be nice for somene to help clear it up as im a bit in the dark about it all to :/??

Re: getting a full licence in qld...
 

Hey, My OH and I arrived in Brissy in December and going through the same as you in regards to the license. My OH is a sparky and had to do the Vetassess exam in the UK. We knew he needed gap training like any new arrival but to be honest we found it so darn difficult to get any true information out of anyone.

So after a lot of calls this is what we found put...

So if you went through Vetassess you are entitled to an electrical training license which is obtained via the Electrical Safety Office website, it may differ from state to state but if you're in Queensland you need to fill out form 11 and I think the license costs $75 and takes 28 days to process. You need a copy of your vetasses certificate and modules certified by justice of the peace. The number for ESO is 1300 650 662 if you speak to someone called Andy then get asked to be put through to someone else as he gave us false information on three separate occasions and obviously doesn't have a Scooby about anything. :blink:

In terms of college training, you cannot just enrol on a course. You need to have the training license on order or in hand as well as an initial interview with the college trainers to ascertain what course you need to go on for gap training. My OH has to go to college twice a week (evening) for 6 months. Cost is over $4,000 which includes college, admin and process of card fees.

I also advise doing your white card online whenever you can, this takes approx 4 hours to do it and costs approx $80.... (This is for Queensland so may differ from state to state)

Hope this all makes sense and good luck! :thumbup:

Re: getting a full licence in qld...
 

Hi all,
This is how I gained my full Qld licence.
I arrived in Brisbane in Jan 2012 .
Firstly, as has already been stated, you need to apply for your training permit from the ESO.
I then contacted Chris Williamson at www.qet.edu.au. He is very friendly and helpful and used to work for the ESO and still has connections there so if there any problems there he can usually get things sorted. He is a one man business working from home.
I did his self study course which you can work through at your own pace.
This course cost me around $1700. That costing was based on me having an ARTC as opposed to Vetassess. If you have Vetassess it will cost more because you have to do more modules. I do not know why this is so.
Initially, I paid a 20% deposit and paid the full fee on the day of my practical and theory test at his home.
Now the hard part. Finding a job. It took me 4 months to find a job. Mainly because of finding somewhere to live, getting kids into school etc etc. I sent of my resume to virtually every contractor in Brisbane whether they were advertising or not. Eventually, a small company took me on and recently laid me of before Xmas due to a downturn in work. Even now with my full licence I am finding it hard to find work. The past few years have been tough for tradies so you really will have to persevere.
Once you do find a job then you will have to fill out a log book with 4 months worth of varied work. It can't just be solar or just wiring switchboards or any other specialization. It must be varied.
The log book can just be a school exercise book and you get it signed off by a qualified sparky, week by week.

So, in summary,
Apply for training permit, find a job, do the correspondence course, get 4 months worth of job experience, do your 1 day practical and theory test and then you can apply for your full licence. Again, it might be different for Vetassess applicants as I had an ARTC.

Once you have your full licence then you will have to do a CPR/LVR course which is usually a 3/4 hour course. This has to be renewed every 6 months.
Also, when applying for your training permit it would be advisable to get a construction induction card, commonly known as a blue or white card. This can be done online, even from the UK if I'm not mistaken.
Other things you will need to get are the AS/NZS 3000;2007 wiring rules and a copy of AS/NZS 3008 cable selection both of which are in excess of $100.
The CPR/LVR and white card courses can be done for under $100.
If you want to get on commercial construction sites then you will probably need to get a 'Working at Heights" and an EWP course. This is what I used to do in the UK and I'm trying to get into here in Brisbane but it's very hard at the moment.
I've always hated domestic work and loathe it with a passion now. I also worked on industrial sites in the UK but to that here you would need hazardous areas certification and wondering whether to do this course at a cost in excess of $2000 especially when all the jobs advertised state 'must have cert and experience" and when they say experience it usually means 'local experience'.
Anyway, hope this helps and feel free to ask any questions. My answers may be somewhat vague as the past 2 years are a bit of a blur now.
Regards Derren.