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what to do after dropping out of uni
Making the decision to drop out of university requires a lot of courage and maturity, but mostly it requires preparation and planning. Knowing what to do after dropping out of uni can help make the transition from education to working life a little bit smoother.
 
It’s perfectly natural to decide that your course wasn’t what you expected it would be, or to find it too expensive, or to simply not enjoy the university lifestyle. There is nothing undignified about changing your mind once you’re there. In fact, more than 26,000 students dropped out of university in 2013/14.
 
Whatever the reason, it isn’t the end of the world. University is not the only path to a successful life and career. However, before making the decision to drop out of university, it is highly useful to know what your options are.
 
With so much pressure from schools and parents put on students to attend university, it might become hard to consider the many other career routes there are, which can provide you with just as prosperous a future.
 
If you are one of the thousands who discovered that university doesn’t necessarily give you ‘the best three years of your life' and are searching for a new direction to go in, then read on - there is something better suited for you out there somewhere. More...
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what to do after dropping out of uni
Making the decision to drop out of university requires a lot of courage and maturity, but mostly it requires preparation and planning. Knowing what to do after dropping out of uni can help make the transition from education to working life a little bit smoother.
 
It’s perfectly natural to decide that your course wasn’t what you expected it would be, or to find it too expensive, or to simply not enjoy the university lifestyle. There is nothing undignified about changing your mind once you’re there. In fact, more than 26,000 students dropped out of university in 2013/14.
 
Whatever the reason, it isn’t the end of the world. University is not the only path to a successful life and career. However, before making the decision to drop out of university, it is highly useful to know what your options are.
 
With so much pressure from schools and parents put on students to attend university, it might become hard to consider the many other career routes there are, which can provide you with just as prosperous a future.
 
If you are one of the thousands who discovered that university doesn’t necessarily give you ‘the best three years of your life' and are searching for a new direction to go in, then read on - there is something better suited for you out there somewhere. More...

The government recently announced plans to put a levy on employers to ensure that a certain percentage of new employees are apprentices. This new call to arms for apprentices has shown a determination from the government to improve the prospects of young apprentices across the country, and is a positive step forward.

However, how will this affect employers? How do they feel about having to accept more apprentices to their businesses? Having pondered about this question, we decided to compare three main employees and answer an important question: Who would best suit your organisation’s circumstances: apprentices, temporary employees or fixed employees?  

If you are a business owner yourself and are struggling with this very question, or if you are considering how best to look for employment, then this article should hopefully provide you with some valuable information… read on! More...



 

Every job has its difficulties, and no single job offers pure enjoyment each and every single day.

Having said that, there is a crucial difference between facing challenges and difficulties in your job, and being unhappy, overworked and dissatisfied in your day-to-day working life.

Sometimes, the answer isn’t to grin and bear what hardships your job throws at you. If it means sacrificing your health and happiness, it might be about time to consider leaving it for something better suited to you and your life.

Read on to discover some common issues in the workplace, as well as learning the difference between the natural challenge of work and an unhealthy and dissatisfying battle with your job. More...

 

Time is precious. The pace of today’s lifestyle is seemingly unending, the day’s too short; finding time to fit in all of life’s demands, committing to family and friends, and having a successful working life, can sometimes feel impossible to achieve. 

However, optimising your time to the best of your ability will contribute greatly to your general wellbeing. Cutting back on unnecessary time wasting is an essential part of happy living, and can greatly reduce stress, anxiety and frustration, whilst allowing you more opportunities to unwind and enjoy.

Here are 6 top tips on optimising your time, and for being the most productive worker you can be: More...

 

Travelling long distances to and from your learning centre, day upon day, week upon week, can easily become too difficult and costly to sustain. Regardless of how much you enjoy the course itself, the long commute can quickly sap you of time, energy and enthusiasm, while also incurring unnecessary extra costs.

Travelling away from home to learn a new trade skill or course can be daunting, but these six advantages of learning away from home will surprise you and ease your worries. More...

Has your job become stale and unsatisfying? Perhaps you've reached a dead end in your career, and feel that you aren't fulfilling your potential?

There are many reasons why your working life might have begun to feel dissatisfying, but many of these reasons can be resolved by taking action and becoming your own boss. Don't worry - you won't be alone!

Thousands of people in the UK alone have already taken the opportunity to change careers and work for themselves. Want to know why? Here are 5 advantages of being your own boss...

1. Choose your working hours.

Being your own boss means, first and foremost, that you can have full autonomy over your working week. This is a major benefit of becoming your own boss: you decide when you work and how long you work for, as opposed to spending most of your working day being told what to do and how to do it.

This autonomy means that you don't have to follow the orders of a nagging employer; furthermore, studies around the world have shown that the ability to choose one's working schedule improves general well-being at work, meaning you are more inclined to want to work harder and better.

Becoming your own boss

2. Realise your full potential.

Having full control over your working pattern allows you to really push yourself and achieve your full potential. As well as having a flexible diary, you can also work as much or as little as you wish, without feeling confined or pushed to the limits by the standard 9-5 hours of your previous job.

This way, you can reach your full potential at your own pace, and being your own boss is the best way to achieve this.

3. Master your trade.

If your current career doesn't require any specific skills that you can develop or improve upon, you might begin to feel disengaged. The desire to have a skill or occupation that requires practice and patience - something that never comes to a dead end and is always giving you new goals and objectives to complete - is inherent in humans.

If you aren't working towards perfecting a certain skill, you might easily become bored and restless. Working as a tradesperson frequently brings up surprises or new challenges that allow you to keep enjoying and focusing on the work you're doing, meaning that you're always engaged.

Being your own boss means you can essentially choose what jobs you want to tackle, meaning each job is always different to the last in some way.

4. Gain a sense of purpose.

Having a sense of purpose is essential to maintaining your enthusiasm in your job. If you feel like you are easily replaceable and the work you do is of no great worth, you are more likely to lose interest in it.

Tradespeople are a vital, respected part of society and have been so since the beginning of modern civilisation. For as long as a population grows and needs houses built, repairs made and new appliances installed, there will always be a place for tradespeople in society. So there is little chance of feeling undervalued if you start your own plumbing or carpentry business!

5. Take the brakes off your income.

If you are employed by someone else and receiving a fixed income, then no matter how hard you work, it will always be a struggle to raise your salary. However, one of the greatest benefits of being your own boss is that you have more control over how much you earn. When you're no longer at the mercy of annual performance reviews, your earnings will depend entirely on how hard you work and the opportunities you are able to find.

As your career progresses, you will be the one to reap the rewards, which will not only be of huge benefit to you financially, but will also give you a greater sense of achievement.

Hundreds of Access Training students have gone on to do just this and use the skills and qualifications they learned at our training centres to start their own businesses and enjoy the freedom that this brings.

Browse Trade Courses >

If you've had enough of working for other people and seek the freedom that comes with being your own boss, enquire today about a course at Access Training or call us on 0800 345 7492. With the help of our course advisers, you're bound to find the right trade course for you.

 

When deciding to enrol on a training course offered by private training colleges, such as Access Training, some might feel suspicious - after all, how can a trade, something traditionally considered to require years of experience, be taught to a high enough standard in only a matter of weeks?

At first glance, it certainly seems implausible, but when you take a closer look into what the old-style apprenticeship process actually consists of, you might be more inclined to think otherwise.More...

Earlier today, George Clarke, a TV personality best known for presenting Restoration man, and George Clarke’s Amazing places posted a tweet raising awareness of the critical skills shortage we are currently experiencing in the UK Construction Industry. 



To say that this tweet received some interesting reply s on how people thought the industry could change to help encourage more people into learning a skilled trade.

"The wage is shocking"

Some people responded by saying that the wages for skilled workers are poor, and that the wage needs to increase to encourage more people to train. This is a common misconception about skilled work. When you are a fully trained electrician, plumber or bricklayer, you could be earning up to £100,000 per year, well above the national average wage of £26,500.

"People are being encouraged to go to university instead of learning a trade"

Other people were voicing concerns over the fact that children are being encouraged to go to university instead of learning a practical trade. However, not everybody wants to attend university. Many people don’t like the idea of carrying on their education for an extra 3 or 4 years, to then leave with an extraordinary amount of debt and not have a guaranteed job at the end of it all.

By informing children that there are other routes to work, and well-paid work, we might add. Is a crucial step that needs to be taken to close the current skill gap. This will only happen if the education system and the construction industry come together to help educate the next generation. This is a topic we have written about in the past, and it is certainly an area leaders of the construction industry are keen to explore to see if more can be done to help raise awareness and educate children, not just at school leaving age, but throughout their time in education about the importance of skilled trade’s people. 

"You can't get stable work" 

This is another misconception about skilled trade work. Plumbers and Electricians, be it domestic or commercially trained, are always in demand. People are always going to need plumbers and electricians to help them out in an emergency, or need an electrician to wire a newly built house. To increase your chances of winning work over your competitors, you can easily expand your skill set so you can take on more specialist jobs, or a wider variety of work. 

Currently the industry is is crying out for more Plumbers, Electricians and bricklayers that the chance of you landing a contract shortly after you have completed your course, is incredibly high. Thus making this the perfect time to begin learning a trade. 

Here, at Access Training we offer a variety of courses for people who are looking to learn a trade. All of our courses are designed for the complete beginner, and will take you on a journey through to becoming a true industry expert. So if you are interested in becoming a Bricklayer, Electrician or a Plumber, don't hesitate to get in touch
diy training

While many of the courses we offer at Access Training are intended to help candidates kick-start or advance their chosen career, we also realize that many individuals want to learn essential trade skills from a non-professional start point, with a view to improve their own homes. 

Thanks to the rise in thrifty living sites and DIY blogs, many people now prefer to get hands on with home-improvement projects, in order to save money on labour costs and exercise total control over their desired outcome.  Here at Access Training, we recognize the need for a variety of training options as opposed to a 'one size fits all' policy, which is why we offer a variety of DIY training courses.

Whether you're seeking to perfect your wallpapering and painting skills, or if you want to get clued up on carpentry, we have a number of courses available on our site that will allow you to advance your ability in no time. By the end of the course, you will have gained practical skills and knowledge of your chosen area, which you will then be able to translate to all your future DIY projects. Of course, if you do feel that you've found your new life calling on one of our DIY courses, we would be more than happy to help you progress onto more advanced options.

We offer DIY training in all of the following areas:
As you can see from the selection above, there are a number of DIY training options available, which should cover a multitude of design and improvement projects throughout your home. If you would like to learn a combination of skills, we also provide the option to progress onto another DIY course to compliment your training.

If you have browsed our DIY courses and find that one of them catches your attention, please feel free to contact the Access Training team for more information. 

Get in touch to learn more about our training courses!

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