Higher Apprentice Launch Engineer Review

I am an apprentice launch engineer at Jaguar Land Rover. I work on programme timing plans and budgets on a daily basis. I also work on ensuring all the required vehicles are build in the pre production phases to the right specification. All my interactions are internal and which include discussions with marketing, the timing teams and internal vehicle customers such as FEU and vehicle engineering

I have developed many new skills. In my first two years I have completed a foundation degree in Engineering. I have also done training courses for using a system called WERS within my work place and have done planning and decision making courses. Throughout my experience my communication skills have improved dramatically along with my confidence in the work place. In addition to all these things I also took part in an external snow boarding course that was paid for by the company.

I enjoy my work on a daily basis and the varied problems that we face when looking at the launch of a new vehicle. My team at work are all very friendly and helpful and I enjoy working with them. The company culture in my opinion is very healthy, with a overall positive, aim high mindset. The programme exceeds my expectations.

I definitely feel appreciated by my team and manager. Through my time at work I have picked up activities that I am in charge of and am the first point of call for information in the team for those activities. I also constantly offer my help to my colleagues often doing work for them to help with their work streams. One particular area I felt valued was the work that I did on the launch budget as this was recognised by not only my department but also massively by finance who stated how helpful the work that I did was for them.

The programme is really well organised. I knew the layout for the apprenticeship over the 6 years from the first day. Any additional information is always communicated by my apprenticeship mentor with whom I have meetings on a 5/6 week basis. Task delegation in my team is clear with work schedules being produced at the start of the launch to show which member of the team would do which activity when.

Both my ITM (industrial training manager) who is a mentor in the apprentice programme and my manager at work are always available for support and guidance. They are both always very positive when helping me and never make it feel at all like a burden. I am happy in the knowledge that an concerns that I voice I will have support and help on.

Both my ITM (industrial training manager) who is a mentor in the apprentice programme and my manager at work are always available for support and guidance. They are both always very positive when helping me and never make it feel at all like a burden. I am happy in the knowledge that an concerns that I voice I will have support and help on.

For an apprenticeship my salary is more than adequate. It covers my living, travel, daily and social costs easily and leaves me the with the ability to save for the future. I live within 30 minutes of work and my pay easily allows for this. I also get a pay rise every 6 months as parts of the apprenticeship as long as I achieve the relevant grades at college and university which is an additional intensive to work hard.

With work I have been involved in the JLR challenge which is a walking and outdoor activities challenge arranged by the company which involves camping over the weekend. I have also been in many CSR (corporate social responsibility) events which involve going to school in the area to inform students of the apprenticeship and spread the word. I am a member of David Lloyd leisure by my home which once I am 23 I will get company discount for. Before I started work I went to university but was tired of constant learning with no application.

Yes

They are a brilliant company that care for their employees. The company as a whole is a positive place to work with daily challenges to keep you occupied. There is also so much opportunity within the business to move around and experience different departments as well as opportunities to move up the hierarchical ladder within each department. With the company expanding and building factories worldwide there are also opportunities to work abroad.

My advice when applying would be to learn about the company and what we do. They should look at the possible work streams and make a decision around whether any of them look like they would be a good route for them. I would suggest that when going to the assessment centre they should stay calm and be informed, also remember that they are there to decide whether they really want the job as well as persuading JLR to hire them so ask any questions that they can think of.