The route, drawn out
DWG 7968 · 5 stops · 3 years to qualify-
Day one Start as an apprentice from £15.6k
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Year 2 Training continues, pay rises min. £21.2k+
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3 years Fully qualified around £33k
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+3–5 years Experienced up to £52k
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Then Your own business you set the rate
The first figures are legal minimums: the apprentice rate (£8.00/hr) and the National Minimum Wage for 18–20s and 21+ from April 2026, on a 37.5-hour week. Qualified and experienced pay are indicative UK ranges — most employers pay apprentices above the minimum.
What the job is
Anywhere food is stored, servers run or people need comfortable air, an RAC engineer keeps it working. The trade covers refrigeration, air conditioning and — increasingly — heat pumps, which are the same technology running in reverse.
It is a technically demanding trade involving electrics, pipework, gas handling and controls, and it is short of people. F-Gas certification is a legal requirement for handling refrigerants, which again limits the field to the properly qualified.
A typical day
- Install pipework, condensers, evaporators and controls
- Evacuate, charge and leak-test refrigerant circuits
- Commission systems and set up controls
- Service, fault find and repair on planned and reactive visits
- Work to F-Gas regulations and keep accurate records
How you get in
- GCSE grade 4 (C) or above in maths and a science is usually preferred
- Strong practical and electrical aptitude
- F-Gas certification is required to handle refrigerants
- Driving licence needed for mobile service work
Where it leads
- F-Gas, heat pump and ammonia/CO2 system qualifications
- Commissioning engineer or controls specialist
- Service supervisor or technical account manager
- Self-employed on maintenance contracts
Where to train for this
11 colleges and training providers on our list cover Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Engineer training. Open your region to see them, then check current intakes with the provider directly.