Civil Engineer Apprentice Review

As part of my apprenticeship scheme I work in the Birmingham Office Tuesday to Friday. During this time my roles and tasks vary. I am currently in the Highways department and have worked on lots of projects. My work for these involved producing various drawings in a range of software from CAD, Civil 3D and ArcMAP. Every Monday I attend college at Solihull where I am given assignments to completed in order to achieve my Level 3 qualification.

I have been an apprentice at Mott MacDonald for 8 months and during that time I have both developed and learnt many skills. The main skill is communicating which is a very key skill and through Skype calls, face-to-face conversations and meetings I have built up my communication skills. As well as my personal skills I have also built up my professional skills when using various software's. To aid my development I have also been put on a range of courses to ensure I am developing in the right way.

I am very pleased with my apprenticeship route. As a school leaver I was unsure what to expect when I first job Mott MacDonald. However, since joining I have been able to develop a range of personal and professional skills as well as open many doors to be able to have a successful career in engineering.

Mott MacDonald have a very well organised programme for apprentices. They understand the programme I am on and do their best to ensure that I am getting the right work to better my career as well as aiding me to complete my programme. Although it is a little unclear of the best way to move forward after these 2 years, they fully understand where I am at now and where I need to be at in the near future.

My employer offers me a lot of support at work both professionally and personally. My manager holds weekly Health Check meeting to ensure that we have enough work and if there are any problems. As well as this, my manager will have informal conversations to check that have enough work. As well as this we also have team meeting and Highways Divisional meeting that discusses how much work we have and aims for my division to ensure we are developing in the right way.

Every Monday I attend Solihull College where my training provider helps me to achieve my BTEC Level 3 qualification. As well as this, I also have to complete my NVQ qualification and to aid me with this I have regular 6 - 8 week meetings. This is to ensure that I am on track and uploading enough evidence and the right evidence I need to in order to complete the NVQ.

My qualification helps me to perform better in my role in various ways. For example, during my time at college we have to give short presentations, complete group work and take part in discussions which all help me to develop my communication. It gives me the skills that I can then use in my job like giving presentations and talking in meetings. My training provider also helps me to develop my writing skills through assignment work which includes written work as well as PowerPoint slides.

Mott MacDonald offer a range of extra-curricular activities including football, badminton and squash. These run on a weekly basis and I take part in playing football which runs every Thursday. As well as sports, there are many social events that take place regular and recent events include bowling and an office quiz. these all help me to network with people in the office and develop more personal skills.

Yes

I would recommend Mott MacDonald to a friend because it is a very good apprenticeship scheme that understands the needs of every individual. You are made welcome by everyone when you join and if you need help or support then it can be easily given to you. As a school leaver, not knowing what to expect, they have given me the right experience and training to ensure that I am developing and to better my career.

If I had any tips for people joining Mott MacDonald I would say to join as a school leaver. This is because you can get the engineering experience which isn't available in a school class room. As well as this, they can support you through your qualifications by giving you the required work and these are the same level as people who have done A-levels and then you can progress to a degree apprenticeship which is the same level as people who have been to University. The only difference is that you can apply the knowledge you have learnt.