Infra Tech support New Associate Review

In my apprentice role I complete 4 days a week on the job training and 1 day a week at college / university. I am in the build team on a client based project, which involves me making changes to existing code within the already built system. I have to communicate with colleagues as well as clients daily, to gain an understanding of what is required to make the programme a success. As well as making the code changes I also have to complete documentation so that the changes can be recorded and explained.

I have gained an IT qualification which was done by attending Newcastle College for a year. Now I am in my 2nd year, we have started university which will allow me to expand on my skills. New skills I have learned are coding languages such as html, java and C#. I have also done training courses in SQL as well as pearl.

I enjoy the programme a lot as I believe the on the job training is perfect for apprenticeships as it gets you ready for when you finish your apprenticeship. It helps mature you and gives you experience of what will be expected. In addition to this I like the day release to university and the team which I have to communicate with on a daily basis.

At Accenture they treat us apprentices just like they would with any other staff. They give you respect as well as rewarding you with 'rewards points' and they always give recognition to the company via email, which is nice as other people can see the hard work you've been doing. The company always tries to include all members of staff in projects inside/outside of the business, and they'll very rarely say no to someone wanting to be included in other projects.

The programme is structured very well. This is down to the Apprentice Lead and the UK Delivery Centre Lead planning the apprenticeship well with Newcastle College. They spent a lot of time to make sure the programme was designed in the best way possible to help the apprentices achieve what is required and be successful. There was inductions such as a 'boot camp' which gave you a general knowledge of coding, and this prepared us well for our 'placements'. This lasted a month. In addition to this, every apprentice has a 'buddy' who can be used as a 'life line' so to speak if you need any support which you may not want to take straight to a manager. From personal experience, i found the buddy programme ideal as I was able to have a weekly meeting to discuss what I had done through the week and if I had any problems which needed dealt with. In terms of task delegation, I have regularly had work to complete, and on the rare occasions I didn't, there are always training programmes you can complete.

The training provider (InTraining / Newcastle College / Northumbria University) are great in the way they support us. They are regularly in contact via email and are always will to help out if there are any problems with the work we are doing. I enjoyed my course with InTraining and gained an NVQ out of it.

The support from Accenture couldn't be better, the HR team is regularly in contact to remind you they are there for any problems and are always there to talk to / arrange a meeting and are always happy to help with anything. Also with the college / university work, if you feel you have a lot on your hands my team lead has been very supportive and allow an extra couple of hours through the week to work on anything I may need extra time on. I found this ideal when working on one of my units as it took up a lot of time out of work and allowed me to get ahead with my work.

The salary being paid by Accenture is higher than the average apprenticeship wage which is great. It allows me to pay my travel and living costs whilst having money spare to either save / spend on what I want. Although, everyone would like their salary to be higher.

Accenture are a company which is very active in their social aspects. There is a team within the company which soley focuses on social activities and there is always something going on. From personal experiences I have took part in charity events such as a football match to raise money for the British Heart Foundation. I have also went on team nights out for food and drinks, aswell as the annual christmas party. I also played for the company football team in the summer business league. So there is a lot going on to keep you occupied.

Yes

I feel the apprenticeship is a great opportunity and will set you up for life. You gain a great qualification as well as earning money and invaluable experience at a global corporate company.

To not be nervous and show as much enthusiasm as you can. By having the right attitude can be even more important that having the grades.