Chartered Management Degree Apprentice Review

I am fulfilling a project coordinator / assistant project manager role, which involves working on a range of projects, from strategic initiatives to transformation and change programmes. On a daily basis I engage with stakeholders, keep track of the administration and documents, help with communications/engagement, as well helping with the overall running of the project.

I have learnt a huge amount, from project management, leadership, management, financial recording, stake holder engagement, decision making, collecting and analysing data, the list is endless. I have also had the opportunity to reach out to colleagues across the organisation to seek advice, career development opportunities and build a network.

I enjoy all aspects of my day to day work within the BBC and feel entirely supported by the team I am on placement with. I do find the university degree aspect more challenging as there have been a few hiccups from the provider, and the pandemic has made meaningful studying (lectures, workshops etc) more difficult to achieve.

The BBC's induction helped to install confidence when joining, and the host department were very welcoming. At first however, they did not understand what my degree was really about, and they could not provide the exact learning opportunities I required as they were an operational team, rather than business. After this placement however, things improved and I was able to work in a hands on business environment, which has only increased as time has gone on.

I receive plenty of support from my employer, both in my host team, and from those running my course. This applies to day to day support and help if needed, and on a larger scale when allowing a lot of flexibility in the programme to ensure my wellbeing is looked after.

We receive a large amount of support in terms of resources available for our studies, and the workshops are usually well planned for the objectives. However, some aspects of consistency have been in issue with regards to marking, what is and is not acceptable for particular assignments, so it can feel more confusing than supportive. There is also a lot of 'tick box' support, which is a requirement for the programme and therefore loses some authenticity

I think that although it is entirely relevant to my current team, and I have noticed a huge increase in my ability, it is hard to tell what is down to the learning provided or from my own active BAU learning. However I am sure that both work in tangent with one another regardless.

There are sports teams however I am not a part of any of them so I am not familiar. Now the pandemic is reducing, social activities are fairly common, and there is always a chance for networking. There is the BBC Club which has a bar to socialise, and a gym.

Yes

It's a great opportunity to get into an amazing organisation with a great culture for helping those at the bottom of the ladder. There is plenty of support from teams and people are invested in making a difference. Also, when things arent going well, there's a chance for positive change.

Ensure you do a lot of research on the organisation, it's culture, funding model etc. Also try and put yourself in the shoes of the managers, who would you want applying? Take all the skills you have which aligns with this and ensure you are confident in person with them