So you are at school or have completed your schooling and have chosen a career in an automotive industry but are unsure of what to do next. The following section is designed to assist you in the process of choosing, securing and commencing an apprenticeship or traineeship in the automotive industry.
There are 5 key steps to getting started in your apprenticeship or traineeship:
The Top Gear Careers CD is an introduction to careers in the auto industry.
To order your copy of the Top Gear careers Automotive Careers Resource:
Email - training@mtaq.com.au
Ph - 07 3722 3000 or 1800 884 137 (regional areas)
Consider an exciting future in the motor industry. It's hi-tech, always changing and there's alot of jobs for talented people.
Step 1: Choose the right apprenticeship or traineeship
A good first step in making your decision is to develop a personal profile. You can use this in the future when considering what career would suit you best. Start by thinking about what you love doing or what interests you the most. Consider the subjects and activities you like doing. You may like tinkering with mechanical things like go-carts, cars or bicycles.
At the same time think about the things you don’t enjoy. For example, you may have found through a part-time job that you don’t like dealing with customers or being locked in an office in front of a computer for hours on end. It’s also important to consider what you’re actually good at. What is it that makes you good at certain things? You may enjoy fixing motorbikes because you’re good with your hands and at working out how stuff works.
Additionally, what skills and knowledge do you already have, what do you want from work - do you want to work outdoors, what hours do you want to work, where do you want to work and how much money you want to make?
The next step is to research various career options to find some that appeal to you and also tie in with your personal profile. If you can organise it, work experience is a great way to test out a few careers and see if reality matches your hopes.
Everybody’s different and it’s best not to go into a job just because someone else enjoys it and has recommended it. Also keep in mind that your first decision doesn’t have to be your last. If you choose something that you don’t end up enjoying, there are always opportunities to move into different areas. Most people change careers during their working life.
The following websites are also a good starting point to find out more about career options:
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Step 2: Find an employer
Once you have decided on an apprenticeship or traineeship, you will need to find an employer who will give you a job so you can earn while you learn.
You can do this by:
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Contacting employers directly - either in person or through a letter
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Contact a group training organisation that can place you with a host employer
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Applying for jobs advertised in the newspaper
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Searching the internet
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Using your personal networks - talk to family and friends to see if they know anyone who could employ you as an apprentice or trainee.
Be prepared. When applying for an apprenticeship or traineeship, you need to make a good impression. When you go to an interview, remember to take information, including a written background about yourself, your school studies and any jobs you may have had (resume). Search these sites for tips on how to get that job:
When you speak to employers, find out as much as you can about the job. Ask them what they will want you to do, what hours you will have to work, how you will be trained, and what you should wear to work.
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Step 3: Complete the paperwork
A training contract is a legally binding document signed by you, as the apprentice or trainee, and your employer. It is an agreement to work and train together for a length of time. Australian Apprenticeship Centres can assist you and your employer to complete the training contract and can be contacted on 1800 338 022 or 1300 360 955 or search online at:
A training plan is also required to be developed to make sure you learn new skills. The training plan sets out what you will learn, where you learn it, how often you will be trained, and how and when you will be assessed. It is designed by you, your employer and your training provider.
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Step 4: Choose a training provider
Training providers deliver training to apprentices and trainees. Training providers will work with you and your employer to help develop a training plan, deliver training, assess your achievement of skills, and issue the qualification on successful completion of your apprenticeship or traineeship. MTA Institute of Technology is the largest automotive training provider in Queensland. Contact MTA Institute of Technology on (07) 3722 3000.
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Step 5: Use the probation period to be sure
Probation is a period of time when an apprentice or trainee works and trains with their employer before each decides whether to continue with the apprenticeship or traineeship. Probation usually last 90 days for an apprenticeship and 30 days for a traineeship.
Before the end of probation, you and your employer must both decide whether you want to continue with the apprenticeship or traineeship and complete the training contract. If you both decide to continue, you and your employer agree to work together for the length of the training contract.