Engineering Higher Apprentice Review

My day to day life at Siemens tends to vary depending on which department I am working for. Our scheme involves several three month rotation periods with different departments in order to get a feel for which department you would like to end up in at the end of the apprenticeship scheme. Currently I am in the Telecoms department therefore my daily routine mainly involves design work, at the moment I am designing the track layout for the Birmingham New Street Project.

Having experienced a number of different departments, I can safely say that I have learnt many new skills since joining the business as well as developing existing skills. I have been able to develop these and pick up new skills through on the job learning and various different training courses that I have been lucky enough to experience.

I do enjoy my apprenticeship scheme, I feel valued for the work I do and the team I work with are friendly and very accommodating to the fact that I don't know some things.

As I have previously mentioned, I feel valued for the work I do on projects. I complete my work to a good standard and as a result I am giving more important project work which is a nice feeling.

The scheme is very well organised, several three month rotation periods take place which give you a feel for the whole business. These placements are reviewed to give an indication as to how well you have done. I attend college to study for a HND and receive the support I need in order to complete my work. I also have regular meetings with my line manager to check up on my progress which is helpful to keep me on track with my goals.

I receive enough support from my training provider at Loughborough College in order to complete my work to the level I want to and I also receive more than enough support from internal training providers within Siemens.

I receive lots of support from my employer, as I have already mentioned I have regular meetings with my line manager to check up on my progress and it is also an opportunity for me to discuss any troubles or concerns I have with the programme. As well as these meetings with my line manager, I have several catch up sessions with my mentor where we can talk about similar things as I do with my line manager however perhaps some slightly more technical information can be discussed also.

I think my salary is good compared to what other similar engineering businesses are offering for their apprenticeship schemes and means that I can comfortably afford my outgoings as well as save some of it.

There are several opportunities outside of work. For example I play football with a group of colleagues which is good for health and lowering stress levels. I also get the opportunity to take part in several volunteering events such as Greenpower racing and The Big Bang Fair which is very rewarding.

Yes

Overall, the scheme is a very good one and I feel like I am progressing well. The people I work with are very friendly and keen for me to learn new things which will help me in my career. Completing project work can be very rewarding and you are made to feel like you have done a good job by other staff which is nice.

Try to stand out in the group exercises on assessment days, the best way to do this is by showing good leadership skills in a way that doesn't come across as being a poor leader. Do extra curricular activities to do with engineering in order to make your CV stand out in the application process.