Mechatronics Apprentice Review

I am a mechatronics apprentice, as it stands, my role involves attending college on a day to day basis, taking a bespoke course which will earn me two types of qualification. During the college holidays I work in the Rolls-Royce factory, shadowing people who are relevant to my job role.

Owing to my previous experience, I have learnt very little from an accedemic standpoint. However I have gained a lot of practical skills, having taken modules on welding, bench fitting and automobile maintenance. These practical skills, while not necessarily relevant to my final job role, give me a good general understanding of how things work in an engineering environment.

I take very little enjoyment from the college side of the apprenticeship, due to repeating many things I have done before in addition to finding the knowledge of some of the teachers to be lacking. When I am working in the Rolls-Royce factory however, I enjoy myself greatly. The factory is a very interesting working environment and the robots that I work with give me a lot to learn.

My manager makes me feel very valued, making it clear that I will be a very important member of the team in the future, along with praising my ability to pick things up. Due to the small amount of time I have spent in the factory, in most cases there is very little I can contribute, but my manager and other colleagues make me feel like part of the team and involve me as much as possible.

As I am in the first year of apprentices to be on this programme, there have been some teething issues. Not everything was set from the start, and some parts of the programme are still yet to be determined. When we started at college we went several weeks without being correctly inducted into the college due to organisational issues.

Support from the college is very mixed. Some of the teachers/lecturers are highly capable, whilst others are lacking. As a result in some subjects we get all of the support we could possibly need, whilst in other subjects we get nothing. Due to my previous academic experience, I have actually ended up providing support to some of my peers due to the lack of support from the lecturers. The non-teaching side of the staff are, however, very supportive.

As it stands, there is very little Rolls-Royce can do to support me as the vast majority of my time is spent at college. They do, however, support me in any way they can, helping to ensure that my issues with the college are heard and that any work which requires information from Rolls-Royce can be completed quickly and easily.

The salary is extremely competetive for an apprenticeship. I do have issues with my costs at points, but this is more due to my own situation due to needing to take trains to college every day in addition to living in a fairly expensive home. I do not find that I struggle too much despite my situation.

The company holds many events, many of which are open to friends and family, making for a good social event. This includes special tours designed for friends and family. In addition there are company sports clubs as well as the local area having many amenities such as gyms and leisure centres.

Yes

Rolls-Royce Motorcars is an extremely positive place to work. They select their apprentices very carefully to ensure a good fit with the job role. As an apprentice, you are treated as a valued member of the team from the get-go, and can earn important qualifications whilst earning a competitive wage.

The main piece of advice to potential applicants is to be prepared for a tough interviewing process. There are tests to be completed to whittle applicants down, before an interview day consisting of team and solo exercises, more tests, and the interview itself. Try to make sure that you pick a role suitable for yourself, as Rolls-Royce are very good at selecting only those who truly mesh with a given apprenticeship.