It is worth doing a QF Apprenticship!!!
I moved to Perth after completing an apprenticeship with QF and I have had no problems finding well paid work for an AME with good career progression towards getting licensed. The work isn't to stressful and the shift suits me.
As there is a shortage of engineers, there are many companies who are looking for licensed and unlicensed engineers. If you work hard, fill in your SOE and have you basics you will be given a course. If you don't mind working on Metros or other group 1 aircraft, after about a year of filling out your 1,5,6 and 10 SOE with a good company, you can earn about 75000 on shift with no course required!
There are opportunities to earn around 100K once you get a group 20 license.
With the average age of LAMEs being so high, more aircraft operating in Australia and not enough engineers being trained, there will be no shortage of jobs for engineers in the future.
I suggest that most of the people who tell you not do a QF apprenticeship are the ones who want everything handed to them on a plate and are too damn lazy to get off there arse and work for it.
It beats me how unblocking someones drain or installing someones oven could a better job than working on multi million dollar aircraft, you may get the big dollars a year or 2 quicker in other trades but in the long run, you can get pad just as well if not better fixing aircraft. Sure there are the mundane jobs but if you score a line job like I have then most of the work is pretty good!
The opportunities are out there, you just have to ask questions and find them!
For those of you who failed in your ambitions to be a rich QF LAME, please do not try to discourage others to justify your own choices!!!
If you really want to work on aircraft for a living then go for it. You will be a lot happier doing that than doing something you don't like for the sake of 10-20K a year. And if you do need the money then just hunt around for it cause its there!!!!
Last edited by IFOT; 23rd Apr 2008 at 13:52.