In the latest in a new series of regular articles, Pete (Monty) Monfort, Director of Arena Training Centre and Monty Electrics, offers some hints and tips to help you prepare for the AM2 assessment.
Arena Training Centre nearly 100 apprentices and learners moving on to complete AM2 assessments every year. But what is the AM2? In this two-part series we look at the AM2 assessment and how you can be more confident of passing it.
What is it?
National Electrotechnical Training (NET) oversees End Point Assessments of Competence for the electrotechnical industry. More commonly known as the AM2, it forms the final assessment before trainees can be formally classified as electricians.
Which AM2?
Learners are often confused as to which AM2 they will need to undertake. There are two groups of AM2 assessment:
a) Installation & Maintenance electricians may complete AM2, AM2S or AM2E,
b) Domestic electricians may complete AM2D or AM2DE.
The actual AM2 you’ll complete depends on the course pathway you’ve completed:
• AM2 – Level 3 Electrotechnical NVQ (or equivalent)
• AM2S – apprentices on the Installation & Maintenance Electrician standard
• AM2E – those on the Installation & Maintenance Experienced Worker Assessment route
• AM2D – apprentices on the Domestic Electrician Standard
• AM2DE – those on the Experienced Worker Domestic Electrician route
What does the assessment involve?
The assessments each differ slightly but common to them all will be the demonstration of safe working practices and safe isolation procedures, installation, inspection and testing, fault finding and knowledge assessments.
Booking your AM2
The first thing you need to do is head over to the NET website, which has lots of resources to help. The NET Readiness for Assessment Checklist provides a list of skills which you should be able to confidently undertake.
Don’t kid yourself and tick ‘adequate’ if you genuinely don’t have that skill set. Instead, speak to your trainer or employer and seek support to gain experience.
The next step is to complete the gateway, which involves NET checking that you have all of the correct qualifications in place and that you’ve completed the readiness checklist. You should only sign this if you’re genuinely ready. You’re then in a position to book your assessment and your chosen centre.
Preparing for your AM2
The pre-assessment manual is vital reading and provides a comprehensive list of common reasons that candidates fail. There are template forms available for you to familiarise yourself with the certificates that need completing and a range of ‘top tip’ videos. NET has also produced two fantastic Apps – ‘Amped Up’ and ‘Inspection & Testing’ – the latter of which was developed in conjunction with renowned industry figure, Sparky Ninja.
Key reading
Get your head in a book. Don’t worry about understanding everything in them but aim to be conversant with their contents. I’d recommend the following:
• BS 7671 Requirements for Electrical Installations
• IET Guidance Note 3. Inspection and Testing
• IET On-Site Guide
• IET Electrician’s Guide to the Building Regulations
Summary
AM2 candidates are often very nervous about the assessment. The best way to combat anxiety is to be fully prepared. The assessment criteria are clearly explained on the NET website and the IET books explain the procedures you must follow. If you’re unsure about aspects of the assessment consult the NET and IET documents or an experienced trainer.
I’d also recommend avoiding the myriad of so-called ‘experts’ on social media, as they can be a rich source of myth and misinformation. If you do take advice from this channel, always check with the correct sources before acting on anything.
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