Engineering Technician Apprentice Review

I am currently in commissioning where I interact with most of the electrical systems in order for them to be proven safe to use by the Royal Navy for vessel acceptance. This involves me learning processes which I have never done before in previous placements which expands my knowledge of different aspects of engineering.

I would definitely say I have equally done both; I could use computers for basic stuff before, but now I can confidently perform most tasks now fairly quickly on a computer New skills would definitely have been learned in commissioning as I am now actually interacting with equipment - using tools to make sure they are fit for purpose

I enjoy it as there are no days the same which makes it exciting as it keeps me on my toes and makes me want to apply myself and continue to develop my engineering knowledge which should make me a better engineer for the future to help deliver products for the customer.

The programme is very structured for my apprenticeship. This is because we are clearly told at the start in our induction days that we will be spending our first year in college as full-time students. We will continue to go to college on day release whilst following a placement plan going around each electrical placement for 3 months at a time.

I receive support all of the time, this is mainly done through emails showing me in the right direction for my development or if its a more urgent matter, this can be done in a meeting. I am also provided with updates on my logbooks i.e. quality and how many I should have done by now

It is always there if it is required by myself. However support is only generally required when my training officer feels that I am slowing down in pace and level to where I should be at in regards to how far into my apprenticeship I am if this were the case.

My qualification will be a HND in Electrical Engineering. I would say that this benefits me as most of the classes can be applicable to most of my day to day work tasks and duties. My SVQ level 3 is also helpful as the objectives to be met makes me more mindful to how I can do a task efficiently.

I am currently part of the apprentice council which sets out to tackle apprentice issues and ways in which we can make the apprenticeship more desirable to others. I will soon be participating in a reverse mentoring scheme which sets out to establish the differences in thought process between different generations.

Yes

It can certainly boost their career prospects if they want to apply for engineering roles - or even if they wanted to go into project management as well. The qualifications gained aren't too far off what a student would get and the wage is fairly reasonable as well. I would say that my apprenticeship is all round beneficial.

Be confident and stand out from the crowd - everyone is happy to help, not judge you. Make sure to show that you care and apply yourself as this will make the whole experience go by a lot quicker, easier, and better which will make it more worthwhile for the candidate and company.