Apprentice Review

My main job responsibilities are to attend any breakdowns on the production line with the technicians and rectify the issue by doing it myself or shadowing a technician. I also carry out PM's on company specific equipment, this generally involves repairing and cleaning the equipment to a set standard.

Throughout this apprenticeship I have been able to gain numerous skills and develop on old skills. At the college I was able to learn new skills such as how to operate a lathe and a milling machine while also learning basic bench fitting techniques. At BMW I have been able to develop these skills further.

I enjoy coming to work as I work well within the team I am currently working with and the work is interesting. However I was not told during the interview stage that the job would involve me going onto shifts in the 3rd and 4th year of the apprenticeship. I feel that sometimes due to my sleeping pattern changing so frequently I struggle to manage the other aspects of the job such as completing college work and NVQ.

The organization was okay in the first year as this was at the college. There were some good lectures that were organized but there were others that were very disorganized. When on site the organization did go down as there was no structure to the placement plan and I felt that some placements were not beneficial to my end job role.

I have received a lot of support from BMW throughout the apprenticeship. I have been put on numerous courses which the apprentices have all pushed for and I feel that BMW did a good job on ensuring we were all put on the courses. I was also provided a laptop which has helped out during my self-studying and enabling myself to complete the college work.

The training provider does give basic amount of support to ensure I pass the course. I feel that where some of the lectures help out greatly throughout the year, there are others I find hard to get even the basic help from and I have to rely on either self-studying to find my answer or I will speak to the lectures which have helped me in the past.

I feel that in the first year most of the units are relevant and they do apply to my current job role however as the apprenticeship has progressed the majority of the units do not really have anything to do with my current job role and i feel that the units should be changed to suit the job role more.

There has been numerous occasions where there has been activities to get involved in at BMW such as doing talks in schools, networking events, guided tours around the plant, etc. I have been involved in a few of these and I have had any overtime paid into my WTA account.

Yes

I would recommend BMW as the apprenticeship as a whole is very good. The qualifications you can gain from this course are very good and you do have chance to continue your learning after the apprenticeship has ended. The salary is very good especially as you progress throughout the apprenticeship and you have other great perks such as the car scheme and a good pension.

Before applying you should research into BMW and the plant you could potentially be working in. If you were to get to the interview stage ensure you ask questions as this will show you are interested in the job you are applying for. If you have an interest in maintenance then you should apply for this job.