Meet Abdi – Certificate II in Construction Pathways

29/05/2020

Abdi wants an exciting career in trades. That means, it’s not only important for him to get the practical training that he needs to get started in the industry, he also needs mentoring that will give him the employability skills that will help him get a job as a bricklayer. 

Builders Academy Australia gives him both.

“BAA is giving us certain assurances, like how to do our resumes and cover letters. I’ve learnt a lot of amazing new skills, in the departments of carpentry and bricklaying.”

Abdi is taking his future into his own hands. With BAA, he knows he will get where he wants to go. 

Why study bricklaying

Abdi’s decision to get involved in a trade has been influenced by his family, who are also training to get involved in the building and construction industry.

“I’ve got a lot of people in the family doing construction and working in that industry,” he says.

“One of my brothers is doing a carpentry apprenticeship and another one of my brothers is doing his electrical apprenticeship.”

For Abdi, this is about more than just getting a job and picking up a paycheck. He says that, in the future, he hopes that he and his brothers can build a family business and work closely together.

“We can all work together in the future and work on amazing projects as a family. It’s more than just a business I guess at the end of the day. We will be working together, and who knows what we can come up with.”

As the saying goes, if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life. That doesn’t mean that Abdi hasn’t thought carefully about the kind of work that he’ll be doing.

A Certificate II in Construction Pathways can lead to a number of different careers, from bricklaying, to shopfitting, to tiling, to carpentry.

Abdi is interested in bricklaying. There’s a very good reason why.

A great time to start in bricklaying

A serious skills shortage of bricklayers in Australia has meant that Abdi could have improved chances of finding work (and getting well paid) once he’s qualified.

This was why Abdi got enrolled to study bricklaying when he did.

“I was told that there was a large boom in the industry and it is a very open industry,” he says.

He says that during this kind of construction boom, “a lot of people are looking for bricklayers and a lot of people are looking for carpenters,” and says that it’s at times like this, “where everyone wants all these sorts of workers.”

Before even starting his apprenticeship, BAA is teaching Abdi the foundational and practical skills that he will use on the job for years to come.

“Today what we’ve been working on is building our external corners,” he says, when we come and speak to him in his ‘classroom’ (a large workshop where the students learn by doing).

“Before we build the wall we make mortar and place the mortar on the floor and then place the bricks from that point on.”

“This is my wall right here,” Abdi says, showing what he’s been working on. “I’m learning how to use the trowel to carry the mud and make sure that it’s plump. So this is pretty straight, it’s not perfect, but we’re getting there.”

Abdi credits his fast progress to his trainer, Craig. Craig has years of industry experience, and loves passing on his wealth of knowledge to the next generation of skilled bricklayers. 

“All this hard work that we’ve done, none of it could have been taught to us without our amazing teacher Craig. He’s taught us everything from scratch.”

Craig thinks that the industry experience of BAA trainers makes for a really effective learning environment. 

“Me actually being in the construction industry for 33 years I know what it takes to actually be out in the trade,” Craig says, adding, “you actually learn how to work properly in the industry.”

He doesn’t think you could properly get prepared for this kind of work if you were only learning in a classroom.

“They lay brick, they prepare their area, load up brick, they build scaffold, they actually load the whole area with the scaffold,” he says, talking about how much these pre-apprentices get out of the course.

But even with a skills shortage, there are still certain skills everyone needs to find the right job. BAA’s got Abdi covered there too.

How BAA could help Abdi find an apprenticeship

Even before being fully qualified, everyone who’s interested in a trade needs to secure an apprenticeship. This can be like finding a job, in and of itself.

That’s why BAA trains students who undertake the Certificate II in Construction Pathways in employment skills, which can make this whole process much easier and more stress free.

Abdi says the advice has been invaluable. He tells us that this includes things such as, “how to do our resumes and cover letters, and how cover letters are done individually per job.”

Filling out job applications is something that even experienced professionals can struggle with. BAA’s advice helps to take the uncertainty out of the process.

“Because everyone has these sort of generic cover letters that they just send out.”

“But what you need to do is critique the cover letter and make sure that it suits the job in which you’re applying. They also teach us communication skills and make sure that you are confident.”

With all these factors considered, Abdi would definitely suggest that anyone who’s interested in doing a trade should look into studying construction pathways with BAA

“I would highly recommend this course. I’ve learned so many skills that I can use in any job and I would suggest that you guys go to Builders Academy, ASAP.”