Higher Apprentice Review

I work in the Advanced Product Creation Area within the Electrical Department. My main responsibility is to contribute to the development and delivery of multiple features. For this reason my daily tasks vary considerably and range from requirements reviews, testing software on a demo vehicle, writing use cases to meeting with external teams to align documents and clarify any issues. I mainly work with other members of my team and occasionally may need to interact with external teams. My main responsibility is to contribute to the development and delivery.

As part of the apprenticeship, I am in the process of completing a Foundation Degree based around Electrical and Automotive Modules. I have access to a large variety of work based training and have completed several training courses that include the Product Creation and Delivery, Requirements Management and Design Verification/ Validation and the Electronics Foundation Course.

The company is a large multinational organisation and for this reason it is a great to start a career. The company has grown considerably in the last few years and the transformation that has taken place is encouraging to see. I personally enjoy my role as I've always been interested in innovation. Working with a team of engineers that have a vast amount of experience from various areas makes the work environment pleasant due to the variety of people that you work with. Everyone is generally approachable and willing to help.

I feel valued as I know I'm making a contribution to the overall progress of the team.

While the programme itself is a great opportunity, there is room for improvement in terms of structure. There have been times where a better structure would have made things much easier but overall it has delivered everything that was initially promised. A key area for improvement is the disparity between various areas of the business. There are specific areas in the business that are familiar with apprentices and it is clear that the structure in place for them is well developed whereas in other areas, they may have never encountered apprentices before and this can be reflected in the training plan.

Each apprentice is assigned a training manager that monitors their process throughout the programme. This makes it easy to get support when necessary and also allows you to escalate any issues or concerns.

My manager is very supporting and understands that the pressures I face may be different to others due to the apprenticeship. In addition to this, there is a team that is specifically responsible for apprentices.

My salary was enough to cover my living and travel costs. In terms of travel, it may be possible to even reduce the cost by lift-sharing as there many people working within the company.

There are opportunities to volunteer for events that the company are associated with and also to promote STEM within schools and universities. There are often team events that allow you to socialise with your team or partake in a team building activity. The company promote learning outside of your work role and there are many classes that can be taken through a training scheme.

Yes

It is a recognisable brand and experience gained here will be valuable throughout their career. There is a lot of training available and there people available that can help you personally develop. There is room to grow within the organisation.

I would recommend looking into the company and understand any key events relating to the business such as new product releases. Information relating to your area of interest is even more important. Ensure that you know how your skill, strengths and experiences are beneficial to the business and that you have examples of scenarios that can be used to highlights these traits.