Apprenticeship. Just wondering if someone in the trade could give us some advice please my son is looking for an automotive appr

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traybon, Jun 8, 5:46am
Just wondering if someone in the trade could give us some advice please. My son is looking for an automotive apprenticeship, he has the following qualifications:
MITO pre trade apprenticeships courses accelate and igintion
also worked one day a week at a dealership
automotive prize for excellence two yeasr in a row at school
and now halfway through a certificate in autotronics at Unitech and doing really well -- anyway heres the questions. Even though he has heaps of stuff behind him people are telling me it is impossible to get apprenticeships these days. Certainly hope that is not the case, WOuld love to hear from people in the trade as to the best way to go to obtain one cheers
r15, Jun 8, 5:55am
he should go and get into autotronics and forget being a car mechanic. if he wants to get rich and have easier over his lifetime that is
berg, Jun 8, 6:00am
Do what I did many years ago, create a good CV, dress tidy and burn some shoe leather. Visit dealers etc and ask to see their service managers. Return again if turned down (give it a month), be persistant but not rude or pushy, show enthuseasm but don't be childish, accept that you may be pushing brooms for a while
traybon, Jun 8, 6:11am
yeah would love to do autotronics
yogibearz, Jun 8, 6:18am
First port of call is the dealership he has been to. The last apprentice I employed came to us for one day a week for work experience on the schools gateway programme. He was pesistent and came over school holidays etc as well. He eventually became an apprentice and was one of the best i had the pleasure of employing . Offer to do work experience at no cost to the employer, be tidy ,polite and persistant. Good luck the trade needs more apprentices but regretfully the number of employers prepared to stand the cost of the training is declining. Walk everyone of those dealers in Wairau rd and do it again in a few months time.
unbeatabull, Jun 8, 7:32am
Pretty much what Berg said. Employers are lazy. Tradesman are even lazier. The less work they have to do to find an employee the better! You gotta ago round, get your first foot in the door and make yourself known. You won't hear back from a lot of them and a lot will just show you the door, but if you keep trying, show your keen and persistant one of them will give you a call back. A good CV is a very important part, don't make it too big though. Have a simple covering letter, and on your CV just list your School Qual's, all the training hes done that's Automotive related, references from the dealer hes done Work Ex at and a couple of reliable non-family references.
berg, Jun 8, 7:43am
Take a copy of your CV and leave it with prospective employeers. Just a copy, you keep the original.
When I applied for my current job I had to do a presentation for a panal of three people. Knowing that I took three extra copies of my presentation, both hard copy and CD, one for each panal member to review at a later time. Got the job :-)
1913, Jun 8, 8:25am
My advice, diesel mechanics apprenticeship would be the way to go, greater demand and higher pay. Try some larger workshops around eg stevensons.
all the best
bigfatmat1, Jun 8, 9:08am
Im a auto sparky.I would recommendauto electrics If you love electronics. you would progress well into modern systems. and then specialise in one field.Im specialising in truck breaking systems (ebs)ect.this is just one of the many fields you can progress into. We do get paid more than mechanics but the real money is in heavy diesel and hard work. Not everyone is after the money though.
fordcrzy, Jun 8, 9:15am
+100
learning electrical kills is more important than learning spannering.
electronics teaches logic and fault finding skills that normal mechanics doesnt. forget the spannering and learn the tech stuff.
mr.anderson, Jun 8, 10:36am
As said above - go to larger workshops/dealerships.Costs can be absorbed better-be very hard to obtain an apprenticeship with smaller 1,2 and 3 man band places.Not impossible, just harder.Apprenticeship or employment-apply the most basic principles; front up in clear smart dress, introduce yourself in a clear voice, offering your hand to shake his/hers in a confident manner, be polite and respectful, listen to what they say and be interested in the firm (do homework on them). Be persistant but not annoying - get the name of the HR or supervisor and always ask for that person.Dont and I meanDONT, ring,email or fax them.honestly, the amount of phone calls or emails requesting jobs I get is shocking. haven't got the time or attitude to front up to me in my shop and introduce yourself! then I havent got got a job/appreticeship for ya!
strobo, Jun 8, 6:26pm
an "automotive engineering apprenticeship" coversaspects inauto electronics /electrical anyways , then after doing the time , those choose what areas they wish to specialize in such as brakes/transmissions ,auto electrics etc.
providing the boy or galhas a good passes from Secondary Schoolin relevant subjects this will have more substanceintrainning for success.
bigfatmat1, Jun 8, 8:26pm
electricalis a seperate apprenticeship to engineering
budgel, Jun 8, 10:33pm
As others have suggested, door knocking to prospective employers will eventually have results. My son got his electrical apprenticeship that way.

Employers like people with initiative!
unbeatabull, Jun 8, 11:15pm
A lot of the early units do swap over between the two though. For example, if someone does (from my experience) does there Apprenticeship then their A-Tech, there is only another 6 months work to finish off whats left of their Sparky Qual as well.

I think it would be a good step to do your apprenticeship first as well . it will give you a good reference, a good understanding of basic mechanical stuff as well, and show you are keen to work etc. It would take off a good 6-12 months off your Electrical Qual as well.
cuda.340, Jun 8, 11:28pm
being an apprentice assessor in the Hvac industry we see it's harder n harder to find the right candidate for an apprentice. our industry has the greatest failure rate, 60%, so employers are reluctant to even want an apprentice in the first place. on the bright side tho, a white boy who finishes his apprenticeship in NZ will be rolling in the $$$ once qualified. when i did my time electricians were the top dog, now days its us.
llortmt, Jun 8, 11:49pm
Racist much!
strobo, Jun 9, 12:48am
Abrown chocolate in a box of white ones !lollhow did that happen!
bigfatmat1, Jun 9, 2:30am
a mechanic with a tech will pretty much have to start again just like a newbie the only thing the same is pre trade and you would be lucky if 1/10 of the units crossed over same for mechanics to diesel only 1/3 of units cross over. The two trades are completely different
unbeatabull, Jun 9, 4:05am
Cause I just went through and did it all. Didn't have to start again at all. 2/3's of it crossed over, only had the level 5 and some level 4 stuff left of the Sparky trade that I hadn't completed previously.

You can look on the Mito website at what's involved in each qualification, and cross reference the units that coincide with each trade. Once you've done a unit that's it, you don't have to do it again for another trade, providing it is indeed the same Unit number. I know what your saying, some units are slightly different and had different unit numbers, but it has all been tidied up in the recent years so it all correlates with each other.
bigfatmat1, Jun 9, 4:29am
yes I know I have to basically restart my diesel apprenticeship because next to no units cross over so it will still take me 2 and a half years to complete.
unbeatabull, Jun 9, 4:39am
The diesel and automotive ones are quite different indeed, I thought we were talking about Auto Eng/A-Tech and Sparky trades though.
cuda.340, Jun 9, 4:40am
can't help that. not my call but thats how our country has evolved.
strobo, Jun 9, 9:11am
Trade qualified Technicians/Engineersare More likely to attainTrade Extensionswith duecredits including extra trainingin regards to other fields such as Diesel /Electrical/ Heavy tradeetc as opposed to starting over . Those other trades mentioned are not that completely "different " anyway , its all part of the many & vastaspects of anAutomotiveengineering apprenticeship. .for example There is aspecialty trade qualfor Brake technicians but thats all they do really is brakes maybe clutches , these people are not automotive technicians or hydraulic engineersbut are brake technicians .these sorts would have to start over if they wish to qualify in Diesel or electrical. Btw aPre trade trainingis not really a qualification its justa participation certificate that may show aptitude towards the trade only and its the school cert passes that will get anyone ahead for starters.
Gota get that ticket first ;)
bigfatmat1, Jun 9, 8:43pm
exactly my point a sparky is not a mechanic and is a completely different apprenticeship. I know cause I have done it. I am now doing my diesel If it was done the way you guys mention, then y would there be a separate apprenticeship for it it would just be a extension!