"But even so, I'd be able to pay off that outlay within a couple of weeks of starting work, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem," he said.
He's no stranger to apprenticeships, having successfully completed one in the printing industry with APN Print in Wanganui in 2008.
He achieved 100 per cent in his workplace assessment every year of his three-year course, never once getting a question wrong.
After serving his time he transferred to print divisions within the APN group in Australia. Unfortunately, he was made redundant twice in eight months as the company reconfigured its operations on that side of the Tasman.
"I've been doing a bit of casual work in the APN Print back in Wanganui, but it's not enough. I've got a three-year-old son and one-year-old daughter, so I definitely need something more substantial," Mr Gray said.
He said everybody had been telling him to do some tertiary study, "but you don't get paid to study".
He's currently boarding with his father in Wanganui so he gets to see his children every day.
"When I get myself sorted out with an apprenticeship my partner and I will be back together. We'll be in a better position to look after things like getting a house," he said.
"I'll consider any- and everything," he told the Chronicle.
