How to become an arboricultural consultant

[Jewdus46]

What are the necessary steps to becoming an arboricultural consultant of the highest level, I keep getting large firms asking me for tasks I'm not qualified for. I.e protected trees around building regs etc. but I'm unfortunately not qualified enough to sign my advice off officially

[Woodreeve]

Visiting the treelife website is a fairly good place to start.

 

http://www.treelifeac.co.uk

 

 

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[daltontrees]

Revised Guide to Qualifications and Careers in Arboriculture Leaflet NOW AVAILABLE - - Arboricultural Association

 

The AA has just revised its leaflet on th subject, see the link to download it.

[Andy Clark]

What are the necessary steps to becoming an arboricultural consultant of the highest level, I keep getting large firms asking me for tasks I'm not qualified for. I.e protected trees around building regs etc. but I'm unfortunately not qualified enough to sign my advice off officially

 

Good for you! And very impressive that someone accepts drawing a line and recognising their own limitations.

 

There are lots out there that would have jumped at the work and taken the risk, just to turn a quick buck.

 

You should give yourself a pat on the back, seriously.

 

 

[Paul Barton]

What are the necessary steps to becoming an arboricultural consultant of the highest level, I keep getting large firms asking me for tasks I'm not qualified for. I.e protected trees around building regs etc. but I'm unfortunately not qualified enough to sign my advice off officially

 

Hi Jewdus46,

 

Aside from the formal training options available, a great way to increase your skills and knowledge is to learn from someone who already does this that you respect.

 

Perhaps you could come to an arrangement with a local arb consultant where you supply him/her with a source of work and in return you shadow/assist him/her to learn as you go. After a while you'll build the confidence to take some jobs on yourself.

[ScottF]

Hi Jewdus46,

 

Aside from the formal training options available, a great way to increase your skills and knowledge is to learn from someone who already does this that you respect.

 

Perhaps you could come to an arrangement with a local arb consultant where you supply him/her with a source of work and in return you shadow/assist him/her to learn as you go. After a while you'll build the confidence to take some jobs on yourself.

 

 

Wholeheartedly agree with Paul. Even if you're just doing dbh measurements or tagging with another arb out surveying, you'll learn lots and be quite useful, too. Where are you based? We collectively might be able to point you towards someone.

[Calibre_Consultancy]

I agree. Shadowing is the best way to learn the work, the processes and mind set that you have to adopt. This is what I did a little while back.

 

Try get in on some simple pre app sites with a consultant, even site monitoring and pre- commencement meetings if they let you.

 

I also firmly believe that getting an understanding from the local authority point of view is very valuable, so you can learn how they assess work and plans that come in from arb consultants .. The standards vary greatly in my experience and tree officers always welcome a very select few consultants that work in their areas..the rest just overload them with rubbish and schemes that don't work. So even an eye in on a planning dept for a couple of days a week for a few months would certainly be beneficial in my opinion.

 

There are quite a few high level consultants out there without the degrees and prof dips.. but have a huge amount of knowledge and experience. Im sure the level 6 quals help if your coming direct from academia but it is not really necessary to have all that !

[Jon Heuch]

What are the necessary steps to becoming an arboricultural consultant of the highest level, I keep getting large firms asking me for tasks I'm not qualified for. I.e protected trees around building regs etc. but I'm unfortunately not qualified enough to sign my advice off officially

 

of the highest level? firstly you need to consider what subject areas you are competent in and how you gain competence in them. It's normally a mixture of qualifications and experience. Experience should be under the guidance of someone who is competent themselves. That's why most professions ask for two years or more experience in a firm of qualified people. That makes it difficult for most arborists on the tools for they're gaining experience but not really in the right areas for consultancy. Useful experience all the same.

 

My advice would be a) seek higher level qualifications as you can afford financially and as time allows b) seek work under the wing of more experienced people. You will gain confidence and then have a reasonable idea of when you can be a consultant but inevitably you will need to invest in software, equipment and business tools so a bit of cash helps too!