Tester/Fitter Review

Our days consist of mainly classroom based lessons, with a few practical lessons scattered throughout the week's timetable for the 1st year, with 4 plant visits to introduce us to our specified job roles. My specific job role is a pay grade B, Tester/Fitter within the Road Load Data department situated at Gaydon.

Everyday is a learning curve, some days steeper than others. You get to learn a plethora of new skills whilst developing existing skills you may already have. Only having to have 5 GCSE's at Grade A-C makes the apprenticeship open to more candidates and the new Trailblazer Qualifications you obtain seem to be very good and recognised worldwide.

The enjoyment for me comes from the idea behind life long learning and being able to appreciate lessons and content delivered at an older age. The majority of apprentices are young, so if your a mature student, take this into consideration.

I feel extremely valued by my company, which is portrayed by the extent to which they invest in my learning and future. Being part of such a vast and growing company such as Jaguar Land Rover is very rewarding and makes you proud to be an employee due to its British roots. Everybody's input is welcomed and taken seriously.

The programme is extremely organised, especially as the qualification we are going for is brand new this year. The Trailblazer qualification is an excellent qualification to obtain and as previously mentioned is recognised worldwide. Be warned though, the policy on behaviour is extremely strict and the threat of discipline is from the offset, so please bear this in mind. I believe this is adopted to rein in the younger candidates and apprentices.

Support is available to all as and when needed. The facilities and support provided is second to none. Any issues can be communicated in a discrete and professional manner where all channels are open to all apprentices. This makes for a truly enjoyable experience, given the piece of mind knowing support is there if needed.

Support is available in abundance and can be obtained whenever needed. All levels and channels of communication are in place to help and guide individuals to express concerns to the relevant person, with a structured support system in place to accommodate all apprentices.

I was in a fortunate enough of a position to stay on my current A grade pay deal as I previously worked for the company on their production lines and transferred internally onto the apprenticeship scheme. So costs were irrelevant to me personally but should be carefully taken into consideration. I know the money is good but budgeting is a good idea. The college is situated in Leamington Spa, so a lengthy commute or relocation would entail and this is for the 1st year and 2 days a week per year there after.

There are plenty of opportunities outside of work for apprentices to take part and interact in. Events are plentiful and putting your name forward is fairly simple. Friends are made along the way so socialising within the apprentice family is easy. I'm a family man so I had my own responsibilities and commitments at home.

Yes

I would definitely recommend Jaguar Land Rover to a friend, and everyone else. I have worked for the company on and off since around 2005 and haven't came across another company that looks after its employers as well as JLR do. I feel extremely proud to work for such an iconic brand who make the world's best 4x4 vehicles and some of the most beautiful looking cars in the world.

Be patient yet persistent and keep applying. Do not be deterred or put off if you don't get in as you can just reapply the following year. Stay focused and remain calm with an air of confidence and portray yourself in a professional manner. The selection and recruitment process comprises of an application form which contains around 11 competence question with a 150 word max limit per each, so answer thoroughly. After this is an invite to online tests which are extremely strict on time, literally a few minutes per 4 questions over a range of disciplines. Finally an invite to an assessment centre day where you carry out a group task with a given scenario and different positions as in job roles, an individual task which comprises of the construction of a relevant part or component adhering to a process sheet and to conclude an hour long 1-1 interview to go over competencies once again. Hope this helps and the best of luck to you all