Research Degree Apprentice Review

As part of the 4 year Apprenticeship you get 4 6 month rotations that allow you to experience multiple areas before specialising in your final 2 years. The university course runs along side your work but is prioritised by employers. You get to work with a variety of new and innovative technologies which is fun and interesting!

I have learnt how to present my project findings to team members which is a valuable skill to have in the future. I have also had the opportunity to go to schools to talk about my company and also about apprenticeships, this has grown my confidence and has been inspiring to see young people aim to be an apprentice in the future.

The apprenticeship is challenging at times as there are coursework deadlines to meet for university, however there are apprentices in higher years and graduates who are happy to help out if you get stuck. There is a good social network with apprentice on site which means there is always someone to talk to if you need to.

Given this is a new apprenticeship scheme it has been well organised and structured by both my employers and the university. There is a specific person within BT who liaises with the University coordinator which means any feedback can reach the right person and will be taken into consideration so that it can not only benefit you but also the next years of the apprenticeship scheme.

There are specific days that we have uni lectures on, we also complete our online learning on these days too. There are apprentices in the higher years who are willing to help out whenever we have questions and people in my team are also keen to help and share their expertise too.

We have one day a week where we do our uni work where we have online lectures and then work through a series of tasks set by the lecturers. There is an online library provided by the uni that has all of the books you need for extra reading which is extremely helpful too.

I haven't done any computer coding before starting this role but I am learning how to code from the uni course which means I can transfer the skills to projects and tasks that I do day to day. When I specialise in the final 2 years I will move into a team of the same speciality so the learning will be very relevant to what I will be working on.

There are lots of apprentices onsite and we have started up a regular social gathering out side of work where everyone is welcome. Also there are tonnes of sports clubs to get involved with - including a newly formed dodgeball club that the apprentices in this area have created a team for.

Yes

I am earning a degree but not having to pay any of the fees so by the end of the 4 years I will have no debt, four years worth of work experience and a job at the end of degree. This seems like a logical thing to do rather than any other alternatives.

Try and organise work experience with your potential employers, this will allow you to be able to network with people in the business and also you will have more of an idea on what type of work you will be doing and help you decide if you actually want work there.