If you are considering a career change, or are just about to enter the world of work for the very first time, you may have wondered what it would be like to be a gas safe engineer.
These men and women are responsible for keeping the UK warm and safe by servicing, replacing, and repairing gas appliances such as boilers and cooking appliances.
Training to become a gas safe engineer is no easy task (after all gas appliances can be dangerous if tampered with by someone without the relevant experience and training) but if you are successful, you are sure to be in high demand and have set yourself up for a rewarding career where no two days are the same.
With over 80% of properties in the UK heated using gas, you will have plenty to do as well and there is no risk of the role losing any of its demand in the near future.
In fact, there is actually a shortage of gas safe engineers in the UK and getting an appointment in the winter months can be quite the challenge.
What are the benefits of becoming a Gas Safe Engineer?
There are many fantastic reasons to consider a career as a gas safe engineer.
The first is that you will be helping people in need every single day. It is no exaggeration to say that emergency boiler repairs really do save lives, protecting people against the threat of explosions and gas leaks in extreme cases and providing warmth to those most in need during the winter months.
You won’t just be rewarded with gratitude and a sense of self-worth either, you’ll get paid pretty well along the way.
Sure, graduate gas engineers aren’t going to be millionaires from day 1 but you can expect a salary of around £20,000 as soon as you are qualified and this will rise quickly in the years to come.
If you choose to start your own business further down the line being a gas safe engineer could become very profitable indeed.
Even better, gas engineer is a job that is growing in demand. The industry is dominated by the over 50s and none of us are getting any younger. Only around 5% of the gas safe register is currently made up of the under 35s meaning that in 10-15 years time there will be a huge demand for new blood.
One of the reservations people have about becoming a gas safe engineer is that they are concerned renewable technology will soon overtake gas as the main source of heat in the UK.
Firstly, we are a long long way from this happening. The funding isn’t there, the technology isn’t ready on such a scale, and it will be many decades before gas is phased out completely, if ever.
Also, gas engineer is a fantastic starting point for a career in renewable energy anyway, so you will always have plenty of career paths to pick from.