Level 3 Maintenance Apprentice Review

we have one day a week designated to theory / college coursework where we are taught by tutors and set assignments to complete based on classwork. the rest of the week we are in the workshop, learning various skills and competencies like health and safety regulations, welding, milling, turning, hand fitting, pneumatics, PLCs and electronics units. we have question packs to fill out for each unit we do in the workshop too. i have also been involved in safety walks, which help assess and ammend any issues in the workshop that pose a health and safety risk

i have learned how to weld, use lathes, and hand fit. the mechanical unit helped to further develop on my preexisting knowledge, and between the practical and theory work helped me increase my confidence when carrying out mechanics based activities outside of work. i have also had to learn to adjust to a more professional environment than i was in before

i fairly enjoy the programme, i find the work interesting for the most part but often the workload itself very stressful and struggle to meet deadlines. our tutors are nice but staffing issues definitely had a negative impacts at the beginning of the course in regards to knowing what was going on or what work was meant to be taught/completed - we did have several weeks with no tutor and no work due to a staff member leaving and not being replaced. i get on very well with my peers and have made new friends on the course

structure and organization has definitely improved throughout my course. at the beginning of the year there were several staffing issues with people leaving and not being replaced, or poor replacements being found / temporary staff. due to this there was a period of confusion and lack of direction where my class had nobody to teach us and no work we were able to complete. since the staffing issue was solved there have been huge improvements, with knowing when deadlines are, what we are meant to be taught, and knowing what unit i will be working in next.

i think we receive a good amount of support from our employer. both academically and personally, either the company or my training provider have been very accommodating and understanding of the situation and getting me that extra support where and when i have needed it. they are accommodating of learning difficulties too

there is a good amount of support from the training provider when working towards qualifications. the tutors are happy to sit down 1 on 1 with you and talk through areas you struggle with, and are generally reachable out of office hours if you have any questions. they are very accommodating of learning disabilities and do what they can to help with coping.

i am unsure of this as we have not yet gone out into the plant on placements. i feel that we are learning valuable and transferrable skills but i will not know how beneficial what i have learned will be until after august 2024 when i start my year 2.

i believe there were in the past, or there are and the opportunities arent that frequent. theres apprentice boys football, but i believe the apprentice girl netball was stopped due to numbers. other than that i dont believe there is much else extra curricular - theres a mini racing team some of the matures are involved with but im not sure wether we're allowed to join or help with that yet.

Yes

its really good being able to earn while you learn, and be employed by such a large company. the benefits are good too. the people i work with are easy to get along with and you have potentially very good career prospects by the end of your course at bmw group

be confident and be yourself. don't be afraid to have opinions or think outside of the box. prepare some knowledge on the company or plants history incase you are asked about it in your interview. if you are selected for an applicant day then try and get to know everybody on your day - two other people from mine were also hired and this gave us a bit of a foundation for friendship and was at least nice to see a familiar face on my first day.