How to become an electronics technician

With today’s increasingly technological, linked-in society, electricity is very useful. As such, there is also a great need for those who can fit new technology and fix it when it goes wrong. A group of jobs fitting this description includes electronics technician. In this article, we will detail different routes to becoming an electronics technician.

Necessary background to become an electronics technician

At school As with any profession, it is strongly advised that someone entering the electronics industry has a passion for the field. At a young age, this may manifest itself as an interest in how the TV or the Playstation works. If this fits your bill, then you would be advised to put your efforts into schoolwork which involves electronics. At GCSE, one may well have the option of doing the Electronics GCSE course which is a wise choice for any budding electrician. Although, much of the stuff learnt will be basic and re-learnt later (if ever used), choosing the course and especially getting good results in it demonstrates an early passion for the subject. This certainty in one’s career path is valued by many employers. Post-16 years old After GCSEs, the budding electronic technician faces a difficult decision. The academic route or the vocational route. The academic route involves studying at school/college/university and learning predominantly theoretical stuff there. The vocational route may involve apprenticeships where one gets hand-on experience of the trade in addition to about a day a week at college or may involve other electronic courses or electronics training.

Where to find opportunities

Where to find academic opportunities The former opportunities can be found in school/college/university prospectuses and websites and the UCAS website. The idea of the academic route is that the prospective electronics technician gains the theoretical knowledge, in addition to a bit of practical knowledge, such that they can jump straight into the trade in a graduate role. ‘Graduate’ electrical technician jobs may be found on graduate recruitment sites, general job sites such as Reed or Graduate books such as the Times Top 100 Graduate Employers. Where to find vocational opportunities The idea of the vocational work is that you earn while you learn and in doing so, gain the contacts and experience that is so valuable to future employment. One may start in ‘electrician’ jobs but progress to ‘electronic technician jobs’. These opportunities may be found on job sites such as Monster and Jobsite, college prospectus or specialist Apprentinceship sites such as Apprenticeships.org.uk.