Engineering Technician Apprentice Review

My role varies on a day to day basis as I am currently working within the liaison team. This involves working closely with both the detail design team and the build operations team to overcome any problems faced when building the ships. Everyday is different in this role which keeps it exciting

I have both learnt new skills as well as developing existing skills. I have become more confident in my communication as this is a big part of the job and is vital for things to go right. I have developed skills like drawing - drawings are important to pass information from the design teams to build teams.

I really enjoy my apprenticeship programme as it allows me to work in different areas of the business, taking on different tasks nearly everyday and meet and work with all types of people. I also enjoy putting into practice what I learn at college which helps me develop more in my role

My apprenticeship programme is extremely well organised and structured. We have training officers that set out a placement plan for us to follow for a few years to get a wide and varied insight to the business where we work on lots of different tasks. We are in each placement for around 12 weeks while also attending college day release

We receive a lot of support from our training officers who are there to help us with any problems we may have whether it be with work, college or home life. We are constantly encouraged and supported by our bosses and others in the business as they understand how difficult it can be

We attend day release college to gain our HNC and HND qualifications - we are supported a lot throughout this as they work with a lot of apprentices and understand that it can be difficult to balance work and college work. The college and business work closely to ensure we are getting taught what we should be with relevance to the job

As the college and business work closely together they have an insight to what we do on a day to do basis to make the courses relevant to our work lives. As the courses are relevant it gives a better understanding of the job and tasks that you do every day

We have a local apprentice council who arrange activities for us to take part in - such as charity work, networking days and social events. The council is run by apprentices so it is easy to put any thoughts forward for new events. We also do STEM events with local schools

Yes

I really enjoy working with BAE Systems and feel privileged to be part of such a great company. With all the help and support on offer and the work being challenging and varied enough to keep you interested and also earning while you learn it is great to be a part of

Advice I would give would be to sell yourself - show how keen and interested you are and make yourself stand out. Do some research into the company to get some background and talk to anyone you know that works here so you might have an idea of some work you might be doing