Controls Engineer apprentice Review

On Mondays we do maths and physics to get everyone up to speed as we all come from different levels of education. For Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays we rotate between different jobs including PLC’s, electronics , fluid power, electricity, milling , turning , welding etc. And Fridays we usually do paper work including knowledge packs, and log books as Fridays are half days. Every day we meet at 8am in the work shop to register and then we meet again at 1pm to register again.

Plenty, every rotation that I have done , I’ve learned new skills. Coming from A levels, I quickly shifted to doing more hands on exercises which I learned was much more interesting than theory alone. I think the knowledge from A levels is very helpful when trying to understand in more depth why you’re doing certain things.

I think it is a privilege to be on this course. The work itself is manageable but also very challenging at times. The tutors are amazing and we get so many benefits. At the beginning I compared it a lot to what my friends at university were doing as it was my alternative route. And I have definitely made the right choice.

Our days are similar to a 9-5 job which I think is the only negative thing. However now that we are able to work from home more for our paper work and only come in for the practical, the overall structure has become more enjoyable and balanced. Our holidays are nicely balanced out and we can also do extra work to earn WTA which allows us to take some time off. However internally in terms of work organisation, we have amazing tutors which always have everything prepared.

I think during the Covid-19 situation we have learned to appreciate how effective our managers and tutors are and how well they organise everything for us even in difficult times. Any issues are quickly solved by BMW but I found that we don’t tend to have many problems within the workplace anyway. We also have 3 month and 6 month reviews which are there for us to share any problems and to analyse our progress.

Again, plenty, we can pop in to see our tutors at any point during the day. All we have to do is ask. A lot of the time we have to act of our own initiative. Which means we do have a lot of responsibility when it comes to completing our work.

I came to the programme with little hands on knowledge. Therefore this is preparing me to go into many places in the plant which are very hands on. Even though I have been selected for a specific role in the plant , I am able to learn what other apprentices on the scheme might be doing in their roles which I think makes the experience better.

Yes, every week in the newsletter there are competitions to get involved in, football, mountain climbing and local events. In first year we have more time for our own personal projects. Some of us were able to take on an IBM project involving artificial intelligence. For this we travelled to Warwick for an introduction into the world of AI and investigated how we could bring more AI into the plant. I was also able to join the newsletter team myself which is also a nice break from work during the day.

Yes

It is a very rewarding apprenticeship. You gain so much valuable experience. And in my opinion it outshines any alternatives out there. It is a very enjoyable programme and you are almost guaranteed success. Lastly, it is a very prestigious organisation, which makes us all very proud to be a part of it.

During your interviews, demonstrate your passion for vehicles and the automotive industry. I personally conducted an EPQ on the widespread use of autonomous vehicles in the future. This helped me prove my interest before achieving my grades. Come prepared and do not stress , the test centre days are very enjoyable and you get to meet your future colleagues!