Apprentice Engineer Review

I don't have a regular day-to-day basis job as every day I might end up working somewhere new and on something different. When I first joined I was placed on a site where we were building a £3 million carcass building that was to house airplane engines for Rolls-Royce. This was a large scale job with multiple different phases and professions working together. More recently I have been working closely with the design and project leader teams developing design solutions, temporary works designs, and project development before the site team head to site.

From my first project working on site I learnt a lot being an onsite civil engineer. I worked closely with an experienced engineer and from their teaching I feel pretty confident in how to set out drainage, building foundations, and the setting a large scale building to an exact level. I'm confident with the tools a engineer has to use on a daily basis and have been given responsibility to set out crucial aspects of the construction due to the confidence the guys on site have in me. Since joining the design team more I have worked heavily with CAD and learnt a lot on how to use this to come up with design solutions to upcoming projects.

My programme is fun and enjoyable. It's a basic introduction into construction engineering and planning. It's a good starting point for someone trying to get into the industry with no past experience or educational background in construction. I feel I can cope with the work quite well and as it's only 18months hopefully at the end I can progress onto a degree level and further establish myself a strong career in the industry.

There is a lot of modules and work to complete on the course which may sound daunting but it is very easily broken down and structured in a way so that you can easily see what you have completed and what you have left to do. Its based off of two online platforms, one where you can download work packs and a second where everything is uploaded and marked. There is a progress graph and percentage that shows how much of your course you have completed and what you have left to go.

There have been people in my work who have really took me under their wing and helped me out and got me involved and trusted me to complete stuff for them that are crucial to the job being completed. I thought I would just be partnered with my mentor when in reality it's been a group of people all getting me involved and teaching me.

My weekly tutor Bill is very helpful, will go out his way to make sure you're up to date with work, and is an engaging tutor. You get out of this apprenticeship what you put into it so if you want to learn and progress in a career then he will enthusiastically help you, but if you don't then that's up to you. I really rate the training they have provided in my course so far.

A lot of what I learn at college does seem to overlap with work. We had a big module of the health and safety aspects of construction which came in very handy when writing and reviewing RAMS for site. I understood what is expected of someone's competency to work on a construction site from college. And even though I learnt a lot on how to do levelling on site learning it at college allowed me to hone my skills and remove bad habits I had when recording my results.

Yes, events are organised like Go Karting and bowling have been organised by the people in the office, and parties to celebrate people in the office's birthday. Also we have recently been asked by Rolls-Royce to help out organising and building a new plant and relax area to help the aesthetic of the site our office cabins are situated at.

Yes

Since joining JN Bentley I don't think I've ever been patronised or treated differently, my opinion and ideas are respected and listened to. I've been able to have a fundamental effect on a number of jobs as an apprentice and to feel like you make a difference in the business is a fantastic feeling.

Be yourself and sincere. From my experience I feel people here at JN Bentley appreciate you more if you are honest and sincere and show that you're really willing to learn and develop. Don't just say stuff because that's what you think others want to hear, you'll earn the trust and respect of people in this industry through hard work and work ethic more than anything else.