Finance Apprentice Review

My role is largely based around cross-charging amounts to other Cummins entities in both the UK and Europe regions. I work closely with the Payroll Team to recharge payroll expenses for the whole of the UK region and manage the sundry rebill account for adhoc expenses. I also complete month-end close activities such as accruals and prepayments and complete reconciliations of balance sheet accounts after month-end.

My professional communication skills have greatly improved since starting this apprenticeship and my confidence in meetings/group settings has also improved. I have completed my Level 2 AAT with Cummins and am currently working towards my Level 3 qualification. Through both college and work, I've developed my excel skills and am now much more confident using formulas and working with data, which will be valuable for the rest of my career.

I've really been enjoying my apprenticeship so far. Working for Cummins has given me the opportunity to gain knowledge and experience of working in the finance sector, whilst also studying towards qualifications and get paid at the same time. There is lots of development opportunities available too at Cummins to keep it interesting.

I'd say it's very well structured. I'm employed on a four year contact and during this time the company will support me through my Level 2, 3 and 4 AAT qualifications. I spend four days a week at work and get one day a week off to attend college. I have regular 1-2-1's with my manager at work and have regular review meetings with tutors from college to check how my apprenticeship is progressing.

I receive lots of support from my employer. My manager and the rest of the team always make themselves available to help with any problems or answer any queries and we have daily team calls every morning to discuss workloads and cascade any messages. My manager offers support with my qualifications too by joining review meetings and commenting on my development.

I get a good amount of support from the college. I attend one day each week but if I have any issues in between the lessons I can always email the tutors. They provide lots of resources to help us prepare for exams such as practice questions and video links to help explain different concepts.

When I started my apprenticeship I had very limited financial knowledge and no experience but working through the AAT qualifications has helped me to progress quickly at work. I've found a lot of the content covered has been relevant to my role and this has helped me to understand the theory behind the tasks I complete.

We have lots of different opportunities available within the company to support networking such as the Finance Development Team and Apprentice Group, both of which help you to meet new people. Cummins also run a EEEC programme which encourages all employees to volunteer in the local community for at least 4 hours per year.

Yes

Cummins is a company with a great working atmosphere that really supports your progression and development, through regular performance reviews. There are lots of opportunities to get involved in to help you to develop in your role and for your future career. No matter your position in the company you are treat in a professional way and add value to the company.

Definitely research the company before applying to understand their mission and values as these really drive the work done by the company and it will help you to learn if you will be a good fit for the company too. You will want to show that you will be committed to both your role and studies as Cummins will be investing and so need to be confident that you will be dedicated to the apprenticeship programme.