Brand Manager Review

I work in the brand team on different awareness, perception and consideration projects. I work on strategy, planning, copywriting, social media, emails, networking, stakeholder management, events, filming and plenty more. I work in a small team for brand and a wider team for the whole of marketing and have been in that team for three years.

I've learned a lot since starting my role at Pearson. When I joined, three years ago, I joined as a L3 apprentice and had no experience in marketing. Everything I have learned and new skills I have developed have been due to my apprenticeships and my time at Pearson.

My programme is really difficult, especially in the current climate. I learn best by doing and currently we are completely online and this is something I struggle with. My provider and employer are trying to support me as best possible but I am struggling with the current format. The course itself is interesting and I was doing really well when I was attending the university in person.

At the beginning of my apprenticeship, I would have said it was really well structured and the programme was running smoothly but since the pandemic, speaking for myself, I don't like the way it's organised. We have an 8 hour day solely on a teams call and I'm really struggling to retain the information being taught.

I receive a great amount of support from my employer. My line manager is always well aware of what's going on with my course and offers me extra time if I need it to focus on my coursework. There are lots of support groups for apprentices at Pearson and there are frequent sessions if you have any questions or just want to chat.

Since the pandemic things have been trickier than they were previously. My training provider still tries to support me as much as possible but there is only so much they can do when the issues I'm having is due to the now online nature of the course. My grades had a high average when we were attending in person but since going online they have been dropping because I struggle with online learning.

The qualification is mapped really well to my role minus one or two units so far. My role is all about marketing and digital marketing so the majority of information learned on the course can be applied into my working role. The units that aren't as relevant - like product innovation - are still useful to learn about.

Yes. There are lots of opportunities to get involved in at Pearson. There's all kind of groups from WILL, to PRIME, to Inclusion, LGBTQ+, KIT. There's lots going on and what ever your interest there is usually something being made available to you. If not, you're free to start you're own.

Yes

Pearson wants to see you progress, they care about your development and will help you in anyway they can with it. I started on a Level Three apprenticeship and progressed onto a Level 6 one. I didn't attend university before coming to Pearson so without them I never would have got my degree.

Be enthusiastic. It's not about what you know in terms of apprenticeship it's about what you're willing to learn. You need to be willing to put yourself out there, be keen on trying new things and developing. The tools are all in place to help you, it's whether you choose to do it.