Is now the best opportunity you’ll ever have to learn some new skills online?

Some engineering professionals may find themselves contemplating a career redirection at some point in their career. For some people, this will involve moving to a completely new sector within engineering and for others it might include looking for a way to earn more and add value to yourself in the current sector or organisation you work for. The job market can be a tough place and taking the opportunity to learn new skills online can really help you stand out in a large pool of applicants. There are many ways that you could enhance and improve your skills to help you find the job you want. Upskilling using online tools and learning facilities, can help you develop as an engineer and to progress in your career, all from the comfort of your own home or workplace. Afterall, now might be the perfect time to take advantage of this opportunity. If not now, when?

Upskilling

If you are looking to stay in your current sector, then upskilling is a great way to change your working life options without changing employer or industries completely. Upskilling is the process of learning the new skills needed as technology progresses, updating the skills you already have or just taking your talent to the next professional level. By upskilling the workforce companies can fill vacancies using their current employees and allowing its people to grow within the organisation. More and more organisations are seeing the benefits of maintaining the employees they already have within their company and offering them new opportunities to learn and re-train in order to move to new roles within the business. It helps all parties involved and really shows that the employees are valued, encouraging them to stay loyal to the company. Not only this, but you become more valuable to employers and then have the opportunity to earn a higher salary.

Re-training for another sector

Engineers are usually multi-skilled professionals, so it’s likely that the skills you have learnt and use in your current job can be used in similar roles in different engineering sectors. Retraining and upskilling can be very similar, and it can be important to figure out what your strengths are before you decide where to move your career. Learning through online platforms can help you train from the comfort of your own home or your workplace and you are able to take your learning at a pace that suits you and your schedule. Re-training for a new sector doesn’t have to mean going back to full-time education. It can be done on your own terms and might just work better for you. You can find e-learning opportunities in a range of different formats and through a variety of different online platforms and more often than not, the courses can be tailored to you. You can find courses covering a range of different technical and professional subjects for engineers at any stage in their career. The opportunities can be endless and there are a lot of advantages, such as the cost being much lower and learning at your own pace. Your learning can be done around your current job, so there is no need to choose between the two.

How can this help the skills shortage in engineering and what’s in it for you?

It is widely recognised that the engineering and technology sector is facing a skills shortage, and steps need to be taken to ensure that jobs that are integral to the engineering sectors are filled with skilled professionals. As a jobseeker, you have an amazing opportunity to use e-learning resources to expand your knowledge, use it to develop your role, your earnings and your professional potential. Things are always changing in engineering; new technologies are being created and the industry needs people to have the skills to use them and make sure that advancements carry on within the fields. By upskilling you are able to fill the skills gap and you should definitely try and use this to your advantage. Professionals like you are in demand and organisations require your skills. Whilst a skills shortage isn’t the best for the engineering industry as a whole, it can bring great benefits for the engineering jobseekers. There are opportunities that will be open for you and although the job market is still competitive, if you are developing your skills, your chance of success is a lot higher. As an engineer, you are very valuable, take these opportunities as they come to you and try to make sure you are taking this time in particular, to do something valuable for your career.

IET Academy

Re-training and upskilling are very similar processes and there are vast amounts of resources you can find online to make sure that you are learning what you need, in order to make progress. First on your list should be IET Academy which is an online platform that can help you learn through engaging and flexible training solutions, designed to meet the learning needs of engineers at all career levels. The e-learning courses cover a range of technical and professional subjects suitable for bridging the skill gaps of new entrants right up to enhancing the knowledge and CPD of experienced engineers. 

IET Academy offers a range of courses in a variety of different categories, which include;

• Electrical 
• Communications 
• Power 
• Professional Skills 
• Safety & Security 
• Transport
• Wiring Regulations
• CAV Skills 

Our courses are written by a variety of content partners from universities and industry and you can even try the package before you invest your time and money into it. The IET are currently offering 25% off all Academy courses.  Use code ‘Relaunch25’ at checkout to claim your discount.

If you are interested in online learning, there are a variety of different platforms you can use. IET Academy is just one example. Colleges, Universities and various institutions often have a lot of online resources available to engineers, where you can use your spare time to further your knowledge or even gain extra qualifications. The advantages of online learning can be endless if you put in the effort, but the one of the most recognised benefits, is that you can do it in your own time. Learning new skills online is only going to better you as an engineer, and if you find that it’s not for you, there is often little commitment. You can choose what you do and when you do it, so is now the right time for you to learn new skills online?