Engineering Degree Apprentice Review

I am an Engineering Degree Apprentice within Civil Aerospace. This involves studying for a degree in Mechanical Engineering with Electronics (Aerospace) at the University of Derby one day per week, alongside completing a level 4 NVQ in Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing whilst on various placements within the business. When in the business, work is mostly office-based and can be in a number of different engineering fields, depending on the placement. Line managers usually delegate work to apprentices that has been assigned to them.

The two week-long residential courses provided in first and second year were a great opportunity to develop team building and leadership skills as well as personal resilience. A number of training courses are provided within the business, particularly during first-year, to help you develop personally as well as a better business mindset. Skills were developed most within the business, rather than through training, covering a wide range particularly communication and team working. Different placements provide exposure to learn different skills.

First-year was most enjoyable as all work was carried out within the apprentice academy, where there were clear objectives and defined tasks to be completed. Training was also provided on a weekly block release. However, when on business placements, it is often hard to see specific goals and targets, often feeling slow and unorganised and that only half the number of people are really needed if properly organised. Training delivered by the University of Derby is also unengaging, with knowledge also being rarely used, if ever, in an actual business context.

Organisation in the apprentice academy is not good. At times it's as though it is their first year running an apprenticeship scheme, rather than 100 years or more. The Apprentice Development Lead team have no engineering experience, though they do their best to try and resolve problems. Systems that should have been in place before any apprentice joins (such as those for tracking progress) were not functioning and were left to apprentices particularly skilled in Excel VBA to resolve. University training is equally as dysfunctional, with confusion even as to what modules we should be covering!

Lots of support is offered for things like mental health and wellbeing, with a focus on addressing any concerns early and trying to improve situations where they can. Apprentice Development Leaders have regular reviews with all apprentices to check on progress and wellbeing. Support within the business can vary greatly depending on placements. Some line managers and teams are very busy and you are often left to your own devices, whereas some will make the time to sit down and help you wherever they can.

Once organised, the University of Derby usually provides adequate materials to be able to complete assignments and prepare for exams. The quality of content delivery varies greatly depending on the lecturer, with some being desperately unengaging and unwilling to offer any additional support. Regarding the Level 4 NVQ, assessors were assigned over 6 months too late, leading to opportunities to capture evidence being missed and the progress of some apprentices being unfairly held back. Assessors also have a full time job as well as being an assessor, leading to apprentices often not being their first priority.

Thus far, the knowledge gained whilst studying for the degree has had little use, if any, when on business placements. A lot of very in-depth maths-based topics are covered in the degree, whereas work completed in the business seems to be mostly based on written reports or presentations. Business work often does not feel like 'true' engineering where problems are solved by calculations or other appropriate means, rather being more towards presenting and reviewing data.

There is an Apprentice and Graduate Association within the company geared towards organising social events and parties, alongside the societies on offer at University. Apprentices often organise social and sporting events amongst themselves. Most teams in the business organise some out-of-work events such as at Christmas, as well as different events within working hours such as 'away days'. Apprentices are also encouraged to attend and participate in STEM events within the local community to inspire others into the world of engineering.

Yes

A degree apprenticeship allows you to get degree qualified with the expense and debt of being a full time student. It is harder work and most work towards the degree has to be completed at home, but you will get 3-5 years of work experience whilst you're at it, depending on the course. If you are looking for more of a student life then this is probably not for you. You need to be quite an individual person and willing to take responsibility for yourself

Be prepared for having to work on your degree in your personal time, there isn't enough time either at University or at work to get everything done. However, don't spend any time on any business or NVQ work at home, this is to be done at work only, regardless of what anyone else says. There is no need to get too stressed over anything, most things can be sorted out easily and aren't be-all and end-all.