Software Engineer Apprentice Review

My role as a software engineer involves designing, building and testing solutions for clients. My work day would consist of a daily stand up (scrum meeting) outlining what we done yesterday, what we will do today and any blockers/issues. I would then be working on my project, completing programming tasks that adhere to the requirements set for the web application. Also any meetings with developers about the project.

Yes. Prior to joining KPMG I did not have any programming skills so I have learnt all about the computer networking systems as well as developing my problem solving skills further whilst programming and writing code. I have also achieved certifications in Azure and AWS for their foundational cloud practitioner modules.

I enjoy my programme very much. It is both challenging yet rewarding. Combining the knowledge we learn at university into industry is great! I have been able to integrate projects built at university into our department to be deployed and used by fellow employees. It is great to see how much trust gets put into you to learn and work with the team, as oppose to not being involved or "just making cups of tea".

The programme is 5 years long. Year 1, 2, 3 is on the job learning and university then year 4 is an industry year with the final 5th year also on the job learning and university. During semester time we will be at university 2 days a week with the other 3 days in the office. Outside of university, we will be in office 5 days a week.

We get a lot of support from KPMG such as having a performance manager where we go through goals for the year and have regular catchups to make sure they are being hit. We have a tech buddy to help with anything tech related and a buddy when we first join to be a helping hand anything work related.

We have contacts with our lecturers all year, they are good at responding to emails and they provide all the resources we need to be able to study the modules on the module pages. Sometimes contact with us degree apprentices isn't the best as when we are working with full time students in a class of 200+ they don't realise that we are only avalible 2 days a week.

The modules I have studied so far have been very helpful, from the programming modules to understanding the computer systems and networks and designing new applications - it has been great. There has been a lot I have learnt from university that i have been able to implement in my day-to-day job.

Yes, I was invited to a females in digital dinner in Leeds due to the connections I have made in the firm. I am part of a social committee organising socials for apprentices. I enjoy meeting new people so I do often put my self forward for any volunteering work within the firm too.

Yes

The culture is great, flexible working in terms of working from home and coming into the office. I have made friends for life in each of the apprentice cohorts. I have had so many opportunities to increase my network, share my knowledge and meet some amazing people in the technology industry.

Be yourself, be passionate and choose it because it is right for you and not anyone else. Do your research about the industry and what the future holds in it. Make sure you have a range of interests not just in your field you are applying too. Look up KPMG values and see if you align with them. & good luck :)