How do you become an electrician in Scotland?

How is Scotland different from England and Wales?

Scotland runs its own system. The Scottish Joint Industry Board (SJIB) was formed in 1969 by SELECT and Unite the Union. It sets the training requirements and skill levels for electrical contracting in Scotland, and it also sets rates of pay and welfare benefits. Day-to-day management of the training schemes is delegated to the Scottish Electrical Charitable Training Trust (SECTT), set up in 1990.

Instead of the NVQ and the AM2 used south of the border, a Scottish apprentice works towards the SVQ in Electrical Installation at SCQF Level 7. Competence is then proved through the Final Integrated Competence Assessment (FICA). The SJIB and SECTT describe the Modern Apprenticeship as the only recognised industry route to becoming an electrician in Scotland.

How does the Modern Apprenticeship work?

Step one is the SECTT Pre-Employment Assessment, which tests technical comprehension and numeracy. Once you pass, you send employers your CV and tell them you passed. SECTT can also share your details with contractors who ask for its pass list. Within one month of starting college, you must be registered with both the SJIB and the SQA as a Modern Apprentice on the SVQ.

Stage 1 is 17 weeks of block release at college, usually starting in September, with site work in between. Stage 2 is 11 weeks of block release covering cable selection, lighting calculations and distribution. Stage 3 covers safe isolation, inspection, testing, certification and commissioning. A training officer visits you on site, and your evidence goes into an e-portfolio on OneFile.

What is the FICA and the SJIB grading system?

The FICA is the end-point test for every SJIB-registered apprentice and adult trainee. You can sit it after a minimum of three years, and you have a maximum of five. Your employer decides when you are ready. It must be taken at an assessment centre approved by the SJIB.

The SJIB has run grading for electrical installation operatives since 1969. Your grade appears on an SJIB ECS (Grade) Card, which now sits within the Electrotechnical Certification Scheme. The grades include Electrical Labourer, Electrician and Approved Electrician. To be graded an Electrician you must have finished a recognised apprenticeship in electrical installation.

What are the routes for adults and experienced workers?

If you are 22 or older and have at least a year of electrical site experience, you can take the Adult Trainee route. It involves less college time. Stage 1 is 28 days in total, made up of 18 single days of day release plus two one-week blocks. You still finish with the same SVQ and the same FICA.

If you already hold an electrical apprenticeship qualification at SCQF Level 6 or 7 and work in installation, the Crediting Electrotechnical Competence (CEC) Scheme measures what you have against the current SVQ. UK and non-UK qualifications are both accepted. After you sit the FICA, you can apply for an SJIB Electrician grade card.

Pay

GBP a year, before tax. These figures come from the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, April 2026 (provisional), brought up to date with a wage index. The Scotland figures are modelled. The JIB rates for England and Wales do not apply in Scotland, where the SJIB sets pay. Your grade, overtime and travel all affect what you take home. Refer to the Electricians salary guide for figures from live adverts.

What you need

• SECTT Pre-Employment AssessmentA test of technical comprehension and numeracy. Passing it is the first step before you look for an apprenticeship.
• An employerYou need an electrical contractor to take you on. The apprenticeship starts on your first day at college.
• SJIB and SQA registrationYou must be registered with both within one month of starting college, as a Modern Apprentice on the SVQ.
• SVQ in Electrical Installation, SCQF Level 7This is the qualification you gain through college and site training across the stages of the apprenticeship.
• FICAThe Final Integrated Competence Assessment. You can sit it after a minimum of three years, and you have a maximum of five.
• Willingness to travelUnder the SJIB scheme, apprentices and adult trainees must be prepared to travel and to stay away from home when needed.

How to get there

1. Before startingPass the SECTT Pre-Employment AssessmentRegister with SECTT and sit the technical comprehension and numeracy test.
2. StartSecure an apprenticeshipApproach contractors with your CV and your pass. Register with the SJIB and the SQA within a month of starting college.
3. Years 1-2Stages 1 and 2Stage 1 is 17 weeks of block release and Stage 2 is 11 weeks, with site work between college blocks.
4. Year 3Stage 3 and portfolioInspection, testing, certification and commissioning, with site evidence logged on OneFile.
5. Years 3-5Pass the FICA and get gradedSit the FICA at an SJIB-approved assessment centre, then apply for an SJIB grade card as an Electrician.
6. 2 years after gradingBecome an Approved ElectricianAfter two years as a graded Electrician, pass the Advanced Competence Assessment (ACA).

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Sources

1. SJIB Handbook Section J: Apprentice and Adult Training Schemes
2. SJIB Handbook Section K: Grading
3. SECTT: home page
4. SECTT: employ an apprentice or adult trainee
5. SECTT: apprenticeship and adult traineeship scheme brochure
6. SECTT: other training (ACA and CEC Scheme)
7. SJIB: 2023 news on apprenticeship route
8. SECTT: the process (FICA)