Kim Maci was all set to go to the University of Birmingham to study psychology until a last-minute decision to take a gap year led to her accepting an admin job at a local electrical firm. “I wanted to save up some money and live life a little before studying again,” she explains.
When she saw how much the electricians at the firm were earning, however, her interest was — appropriately — sparked. “The type and diversity of their work really appealed to me. I had friends who had gone to university, left with a huge amount of debt and then struggled to find a job.”
Deciding against university altogether, Maci enrolled at a nearby adult college and started training to be an electrician. She
