IT Apprentice Review

Junior business analyst supporting one main project and working on various tasks I'm given by my task manager or others within my team. Day to day I'm usually working on various tasks which involve making presentations, using excel and sometimes coding. Sometimes I have many meetings in a day, if I'm working on a project that involves talking to customers, but I'm usually able to find time to do work at my desk.

I've learnt some Java at university and a little bit of JavaScript at work. Developed my skills in Excel and Power Point and learnt how to carry out meetings. Overall I've adapted to the office environment and understand what's expected within it. I've also been involved in the scientific side by shadowing experiments and discussing software with scientists.

At university we are free to manage our own time and plan our assignments independently, which allows me to enjoy the experience more than a more regimented approach. At work I am also able to focus my work on areas that I find enjoyable and get involved in new projects that will further my development. Overall the programme involves using aspects learnt during education within work work which is enjoyable.

The structure is clearly laid out to us and attending university on Mondays makes sense as to not break up the work week too much. At work we have rotations within teams every 8 months which sounded confusing at first but made more sense as time went on and I built up networks around my current role. Although at university in the first term half of our intake were able to finish Monday at 4pm whereas my half finished at 5pm but that was just how the time table worked out.

My day to day task manager is very supportive and encouraging. She checks up on any current work I am involved with and puts my name forward when new projects are initiated. I also meet regularly with my buddy, mentor and other apprentices within my team to get feedback and help at work.

They provide webinars which are useful for support when not in university. At university the tutors are mostly helpful giving feedback and helping with ongoing work. We have reviews every month to check on our progress which are very useful for highlighting issues and areas for improvement. Overall considering we only attend 1 day a week support is good.

The business unit is very relevant to my current role which showed in my feedback/grade for the assignment we submitted. This helped me understand the overall project better at work and gain some background as to why the project was happening. Even coding at university has transferred to my current role as I use JavaScript at work which is similar to Java at university.

There are plenty of activities to be involved in such as football, culture club, charity etc. I am involved in the charity meetings and will be doing a sky dive and possibly a tough mudder this year. Our team organises group lunches and activities around Christmas as well. Workplace is a great place for getting involved in any groups that relate to personal interests.

Yes

Both people who work at AZ and used to work here claim it is the best place they've worked. Having only worked at bar before AZ I would agree with them and want to share my experience with friends and family as I already do. Overall the environment encourages personal growth in a unique and supportive way.

Think about how you want to be seen by others. Be honest and straight forward when answering questions but make sure to include any relevant detail. Mainly come prepared with a mindset about who you are and what you want to achieve. Also research the company and spend plenty of time on your presentation.