Software Engineering Apprentice Review

by Vodafone

Best Apprenticeship Employer

Rating

8.1/10

1. Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:

Site Reliability Engineer within the cloud engineering department. It involves provisioning and maintaining the underlying platform/infrastructure (eg aws resources) for the digital aspectsscripts. of Vodafone, as well as automation solutions and scripts

8/10

2. Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?

I have learnt a multitude of skills relating to cloud engineering (a space within software development that I had never really looked into before) as well as developing general programming skills. The team has been very helpful in facilitating this learning journey

8/10

3. To what extent do you enjoy your programme?

I very much enjoy my program, the team endeavour to get me involved with as much work as possible and being paid to learn (as well as doing impactful work) is a great feeling

9/10

4. How well organised/structured is your programme?

My manager has been very helpful in aligning my work with the current modules we're learning about with Multiverse wherever possible.

8/10

5. How much support do you receive from your employer?

I receive plenty of support from my close management as well as regular meetings with management higher up to discuss progress, questions and concerns.

9/10

6. How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?

Much support is offered and we have regular meetings, though I have found that mentioning concerns that a lot of the work available isn't strictly relevant to my KSBs seems to go slightly glossed over by my coach. This may just be because we still have plenty of time to find work before the portfolio due date.

6/10

7. How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?

The team I'm in is less involved in the actual world of software development than some of my peers, so the modules can be somewhat irrelevant to the actual work I'm performing, but the learning itself is good for context and I'm sure will be useful in the future in my career (and the deployment module was pertinent to my work too)

7/10

8. Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)

There are plenty of extra curriculars - the team goes for regular socials and the youth/early careers groups set up many clubs such as different sports clubs, reading clubs and the like.

10/10

9a. Would you recommend Vodafone to a friend?

Yes

9b. Why?

It has been an all round incredibly friendly place to work with a great culture. They look after their staff with good benefits and a very fair salary. Everyone is passionate about their work and keen to help me develop both professionally/technically and personally.

10. What tips or advice would you give to others applying to Vodafone?

Read up on the company spirit, values and pillars before the interview as well as the company goals. The interview process was far more about interest in the company and personal values than technical skill as they believe (correctly) that anyone can learn the technical side on the job as long as they're interested. There was a small section of the interview where you speak to two developers, though, so make sure you have a working interest in technology and come prepared with questions!