Project Administrator Apprentice Review

I am an administrator for a team of 20 Project Managers. I support PMs in specific projects through gathering information, updating documents and setting up meetings. I also support the team on ad hoc jobs, such as supporting single meetings through taking notes or updating documents, or maybe just setting up a meeting. The ad hoc jobs can vary. I am also accountable for other documents and meetings for my team.

I am more confident thanks to leading meetings and presentations. My skills on Microsoft platforms have also massively improved. My time management skills and organisational skills have improved thanks to the responsibility of having a number of jobs to do at once and needing to prioritise them.

My programme has given me great experience of working with a dedicated team of Project Managers and multiple other people across the company in different roles. It has allowed me to see the processes of supplying a product which I feel is very rare. My programme has been enjoyable throughout thanks to this as my work is varied.

My programme has been well organised, with induction and training all thought out. I am given 1 day a week to focus on my studies, my 'study day', and have both my mentor and manager to speak to for support. I have regular meetings with my mentor and manager to ensure everything is as it should be. I am given tasks that challenge me appropriately and have been encouraged to step out of my comfort zone.

I have received a lot of support from my employer, with both my mentor and manager in my team for support. I also have a wider network of apprentices to contact if I need to, with the apprenticeship leaders ensuring we are in contact through our apprentice social media page on Workplace. If I were to encounter a problem I would be confident in who I could contact and have always received the best support when I have needed it.

I have now completed my qualification which was 9 months earlier than planned. I feel happy that I was able to finish my qualification early but feel the support was not as good as it could have been from my training provider. A lot of the support was communicated through short, brief emails and a lot of the time I felt confused about what I needed to do. The help I received in preparation for my final exams was quite poor as I did not meet with my tutor as much as I feel I should have and was also given very little revision resources in order to prepare for my exam.

My qualification does support me to some extent in that it gave me assignments to research into my company to understand its structure and policies which I feel does support me in my role as I don't think I would understand it as well. My qualification also required me to complete a project and I feel this was useful as it encouraged me to use the resources that the PMs in my team use. However, a lot of my work is based on requests and filling in documents that I feel my qualification is not required to complete.

There are a number of groups to join, such as AZ Pride, which host coffee mornings and events outside of the workplace.

Yes

I feel working for AstraZeneca is a great experience as you are treated like an adult, given the experience of working for such a big company all while being supported and encouraged to build your skills.

Ensure your application is clear and thought out and be prepared for the interview/assessments days as there is a high expectation.