QA Technologist Apprentice Review

My involvement is in Quality Assurance, making sure food is safe and good quality for the end consumer. My day to day tasks revolve around the above, and ensuring as a business we are compliant with legislation and regulations. These tasks range from audits (internal and external), complaints, document/ policy reviews and more. My responsibility as a member of QA is to be a pioneer for the business and help lead the way in Quality Assurance representing Premier Foods.

This apprenticeship has lead me to learn a vast amount of knowledge and depth to an industry which I overlooked before. The supply chain in the industry has many interactions, rather than just the bits you see (e.g farmers, supermarkets & factories). You learn about other interactions such as pest control, microbiological/ nutrition testing and the chemistry behind food structure, New product development / Existing product development and much more. Premier Foods have given me the opportunity to learn this whilst undertaken a diploma qualification, and along the way additional qualifications (HACCP, Food Safety, TACCP/ VACCP, Acheta Pest Awareness Laser Training and more). In addition to working both in a office and factory environment it gives a varied role with interacting with an array of individuals at different levels helping my communication skills. This extends to the interaction of visitors, or auditors where I am able to learn new professional skills by creating and maintaining relationships.

I very much enjoy the environment I work in and I am fortunate to be part of a great team who are very supportive. Premier Foods as a business looks after you very well, and are always pushing to develop you as a person. The course has been challenging at times, being able to manage both full time work and the education side has had its moments, but the learning and interaction I have had with the UNI, students and tutors has been a great experience.

The programme is well organised, and the support from tutors is second to none. A few times things can have been better structured, for example our study weeks. Some people (myself included) have to travel 4 hours from home and stay away for the week. When we have the study week there is times where you think if it was organised in a certain way you wouldn't need to be there for a whole week but 3/4 days (e.g. Normal working day 8-5).

My employer gives me a lot of support, and my mentor and I have monthly meetings to catch up. Here we discuss my progress with work and Uni, how I am managing, any concerns etc. These 1-2-1 meetings are great ways to update on my learning, communicate with my mentor and be assisted with further support if required. Where ever I need help with learning, or further training my immediate team (including mentor/manger or Technical Manager) are at hand to help or point me in the right direction to help further my learning.

The training provider are very helpful. The tutors are approachable and available to support with questions or queries you have. They will answer messages quickly and will also provide you feedback for improvement. The provide us with ample time and support when completing assignments or tasks we have. They push it constantly to aim for Merit and Distinction criteria on our work which is really positive as they want us to do the best we can.

By learning more about the industry (training provider qualification) this has helped me to understand more about my job. It gives you a greater understanding in depth why you do certain jobs and how they all impact one another. For example, legislation and regulations. How these feed into policies, training and practices on site. From my learning it has also helped me understand when more experienced and knowledgeable people talk about certain issues and I can follow conversations or actions that will be taken or decided.

My company has the Sports and Social club. You can join for a certain amount a month and here you join a monthly lottery, get many back from tickets and plenty of other discounts. We also have the hamper, this is a website where you can get many discounts from shops on high street, online discounts and more. The workplace regularly organised trips to different events, and annually hold a Summer BBQ event for the whole site. When I am not working, I follow my hobbies of football, gaming and motorbikes.

Yes

The place is a very friendly and welcoming place to work. The training on offer to further your career is lucrative, and plenty of opportunities to further your development. The pay is competitive and the training opportunities to get qualifications are a good sign of investment in you by the business which is positive. Along with other benefits (e.g. hamper, social club) it offers great benefits to help save you money which is rewarding.

Research the history of the business, and learn about your job role. Present yourself confidently, and be ready for a variety of questions and have examples to mind (e.g where you have worked well in a team, tell me about a time where something didn't work and what you would do better next time). Make sure you dress for the occasion as first impressions count, make sure you are on time, you are organised and make the opportunity could as you only get one shot.