Heavy Goods Vehicle (Cat C) drivers course: 5 days, £895, earn £18-20k/year
General Domestic Electrician's course: 17 days, £2,295 (+ tools & van), earn ~£25-35k/year
General Domestic level 2 Plumbing course: 10 weeks, £4,795 (+ tools & van), earn ~£30-40k/year
Level 3 Plumbing and Gas Engineer course: 20 weeks, £12,975 (+ tools & van), earn ~£35-45k/year
Earnings, of course are rough average values - but you can live anywhere you like, be your own boss, work business hours & holidays (don't underestimate how much this means!), and earnings can be much higher running a successful business (and much lower with an unsuccessful one!).
CPL pilot, with ATPL subject passes (modular): 2-3 years, £40,000 (+ type rating), earn ~£15-25k/year?
An employee for the rest of your life, forced to live where the airports are (very commonly in a foreign country), getting up at 3 am or home at 1 am, and never seeing a weekend or having a public holiday (like Christmas) off. Your license will be on the line every six months, and totally worthless in the event of any of a dozen common medical conditions.
It has to be said ...
Last edited by Checkboard; 5th Oct 2011 at 14:24.