APEP Degree Apprentice Review

I am a design engineer for prototype body-in-white and tooling. We use 3D EXPERIENCE CATIA (CAD software) to design tooling using a library of generic parts (like lego) and custom-made parts to hold prototype parts in place to be fixed together and assembled.

So far (end of year 1) learned a lot about how to use CAD software efficiently and the features within it, basics of material choice, manufacturing methods and the general design process.

I enjoy a lot of aspects of the programme - CAD modelling is fun and interesting, but can get monotonous sometimes. There's a lot of perks at JLR, eg we had a track experience day with some of the products, and there's lots of training courses and communities you can join. There's also less enjoyable aspects - the corporate work environment can be draining, boring and frustrating a lot of the time especially with a company as big as JLR.

It depends on the team. Some apprentices are treated like C-grade engineers and given actual tasks (myself included), which is nice because it gives you a sense of purpose. Some apprentices do very little actual work (are still doing silly little training tasks this late in the year), which can seem unfair since you're being paid the same but at the end of the day acual experience is a lot more valuable. There's obviously the KSBs (Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours) you have to meet as a structure, but no specific training plan from the employer for how to hit these. This gives the apprentice and their team flexibility for how and when learning is completed, but can sometimes be frustrating.

I have weekly meetings with an assigned mentor to talk through any personal issues and discuss development, and I have an Early Careers representative from JLR to ensure that I stay on target for the apprenticeship.

Outside of usual university lecures, I have a Uni mentor who I have my tripartite meetings every 10-12 weeks with to check on my progress. She is available for mental health and academic support anytime.

Some modules are unnecessary for my job role but necessary to be employable in general. Some of them (maybe 30%) are directly linked to my role so have helped already and others are useful for just learning how to think like an engineer. One module is completely useless and a waste of time but still has to be completed.

There's lots of extra-curricular activities and communities, but I don't tend to get involved. There's also an Early-Careers community who organise a lot of events just for apprentices, undergrads and graduates.

Yes

The pay is excellent with performance-based (uni and work) pay rises each year, university of warwick is a pretty good training provider, there's lots of support available, you're pretty much guaranteed a £41,000+ salary once you graduate (as of 2024), and there's decent job security. Also, the area is fairly cheap to live in and leamington spa is nice (though the rest of the midlands is questionable).

Interview prep - research JLR and its current business strategies, learn and apply personal examples to the "Creator's Code". My interview was a 30 minute powerpoint on the "REIMAGINE" strategy followed by 30 minutes Q & A about it, then 1hr30 "behavioural and motivational" interview. A lot of the second part was being asked to apply personal examples to the Creator's Code.