Civil Engineering Advanced Level Apprentice Review

I work along side experienced and qualified civil engineers to design new drawings, render existing drawings and resolve any technical issues for water treatment works. Every Wednesday I attend college at Leeds College of Building to further my knowledge in the field of civil engineering with an end goal of acquiring a BTEC Level 3 qualification after my two year course.

I increase my knowledge on a daily basis as I work with experienced professionals. After just four months in my role, I now understand the health and safety principles in construction and how to use technical modelling software's like Revit and AutoCAD. Furthermore, I know how to use data sharing systems like BIM 360 and ProjectWise to share my work among my colleagues and the client.

Starting an apprenticeship during the Corona virus pandemic has presented some challenges. Meeting my colleagues has been difficult since I've been working from home but the business has successfully adapted to the situation quickly. We now use digital ways to connect to each other through Microsoft Teams and email. I enjoy connecting with multiple employees at once with large online daily meetings.

Although I started during the pandemic, the programme has still been organised. I know where to go when to ask for help. Everyone around me is always supportive. College has gone ahead like usual, although it is online I can still ask the teachers questions just like it would be if I was in college face to face.

Upon starting, I was assigned a personal mentor. Any questions, worries or doubts I had were instantly eradicated as I had a trust worthy buddy I could connect with. My manager also worked closely with me as he guided me on how to get started.

My college tutors are very supportive. We have personal one to one chats every month. This applies to every person in my class at college. They guide the teaching correctly to apply to the assignments. The work is broken down and easy to understand allowing me to get a distinction on my first assignment!

I can see how various aspects are applying to my role. For example, one week I was learning about different materials used in the construction of a building then the next day during my role at work I was asked which material would be best for a road which was being laid. My learning at college assisted me in answering the technical issues during my role as an apprentice.

Initially I thought all activities would be cancelled because of the pandemic. But I was surprised to find out that there is a team quiz every Friday online! This is a great way for me to meet my new colleagues. I'm presenting the quiz this week!

Yes

It's a friendly and supportive work place. Especially for someone completely new to the industry like myself. When first starting I was overwhelmed with the different technical aspects to my role as a Civil Engineering Advanced Level Apprentice. However with the help of my manager and a personal buddy assigned to me, I am learning new things everyday.

You have to be able to work well in a team. Every project I have worked on as had at least ten people working on it with me. It's very important that your enthusiastic and not scared to ask questions when your working at Mott MacDonald. Also you must be an eager learner, the core principal behind being an apprentice is learning everyday on the job in real world scenarios.