Craft electrical apprentice ( year 2) Review

On a day to day business I learn to and make the electrical panels and looms that go into an aircraft. I also learn to fit these and complete one day of college a week in order to learn the theory side such as aerodynamics, communications, material properties and electrical component theory as well as many more as I complete more of my apprenticeship.

Whilst completing my apprenticeship thus far I have learned many new skills . I have learnt the obvious things that are connected to my apprenticeship such as stripping electrical wire, crimping pins etc... Leonardo has also given me lots of opportunities to develop my inter personal skills such as allowing us to run social and charity events where I get to meet lots of new people .

Generally I enjoy my programme a lot because I enjoy hoe practical it is. I like that I can visually see the results of my work and that I know that it will be going into a working helicopter which I think is very impressive and shows that even someone like myself can do something different.

Generally our programme is organised okay. Our on site placements are organised very well and we always have at least 2 weeks notice before we need to move placements which gives us good time to go and meet our new managers. But the organise with college can be poor especially when it comes to electrical tutoring.

We receive a lot of support from our employer. There is always someone we can speak to about any issues we are experiencing with college or our working environment. We also have good access to the on site occupational health centre which can also provide things like counselling should we need it.

Our training provider provides some support. Generally they are good when contacted with any issues related to our work but they can be disorganised which leads to gaps in our learning that they are sometimes not able support us to fill as there is a lack of electrical teaching staff.

I think that this only somewhat helps us perform better in our roles. I feel that classes like materials are more aimed at people like mechanical students that work with the materials that are being taught. I also think that the general course was built mainly for mechanical students which means that a lot of the other trades can feel forgotten about.

There are loads of extra curricular events that we can take part in. There are loads of STEM events which help to promote engineering but also lot's of social and charity events which are chosen and planned by trainees across site. Just this year we have gone out for several meals as well as bowling and have lots of events lined up such as a pub quiz and escape rooms.

Yes

I think Leonardo is a very welcoming place that has a wide variety of roles available to suit different trades and interests. I also think that it as good learning environment and gives people a good opportunity to get there qualifications and have the ability to move onto a different career in a similar trade.

I think the best idea is to show previous interest in STEM activates in your application like extra curricular activities such as flying start challenge. The other tip is to always run your answers through a spelling and grammar checker as this will help to show you took care when writing your application.