Engineering Degree Apprentice Review

Day-to-day at the moment on placement I support the Design Team in dealing with customer requests that they have specially commissioned. This involves Design and Engineering models that then allows each client to check that there car is perfect to how they want and if needed then change up the colours or materials they require. When not on placement it is dealing with problems that occur when building the cars and how we go about solving them.

Since the last survey I have enhanced my CAD and Design skills along with my problem solving. However, the problem is that in my home department don't give me the chance to enhance my skills so going on placement meant I could learn and gain more skills in the fields that I am interested in

I enjoy the placement aspect but in home department because it's not what I am interested so sometimes the thing I am doing is just to make up numbers in order to have jobs done rather than having my own tasks to complete and work on in order to show what I can do. However on placement at the moment I am really enjoying it because it's to do with what I am looking to do

Not well structured. No help from line manager with placements or tasks to complete within home department. I come in and feel like I am there to make the numbers and because things aren't structured. I had to sort out my placement because I don't know exactly how it is meant to take place.

Since last September there have been monthly check ups and message to check that everything is ok. Going forward my employer is going to support even more and change up the programme to suit everyone in different departments and at different levels so I look forward to how the next years pans out

From the Uni we don't receive much support at all. We do our coursework and get marked but because we are apprentices it means we just go to uni and then come home. It is sometimes really difficult to contact them and takes them a long time to reply to emails. The apprentice contact at the Uni is really hard to contact too

In my home department my Uni degree doesn't benefit my role however on my placement everything I am learning at University fits what I am doing in the Design Department and I take what I learn and put it into my day-to-day working at the moment. It means I can enhance my skills even mroe

To begin with I didn't know of any, but now I have spoken to other apprentices there are sports societies to get involved in, school visits to design, make and race go karts, chances to go back to other colleges and schools and every quarter there is an apprentice social

Yes

I would recommended this company because everyone is extremely nice and easy to get on with. The roles in your home department aren't always the best and might not be where you want to be but the placements are the chance when you can go round to the departments you want to be in and show what you can do. There are things that need working on but this is to be happening over the next few years

Learn about the company, make sure you are ready for the assessment days by creating a portfolio of yourself and what you have achieved and why you should be given the job. I would also apply to many different companies just in case this one doesn't work but sell yourself and make yourself memorable when in the interview