Trainee Telecoms Engineer Review

I am a trainee telecoms engineer, going out on the road to create new broadband connections, identify faults and fix any issues. I am use my training to work through jobs but have a wide network of colleagues that are willing to guide me through any problem I struggle with. I mostly work on my own so have good autonomy over my workload responsibilities.

My background career is very different to my new role. However, this does not matter much as I have gone through a three month intensive training program that is all carried out in dedicated training centres that have loads of great mock ups of the real work I now deal with. The vast amount of practical skill I have learnt have been complimented by soft skills such as how to deal with customers and stressful situations.

The program is good to be on as I initially started with a group of seven other new recruits and we all got on really well and helped each other out whenever someone needed assistance. After initial training the support continues and the company does not pile on the pressure as they prefer you to do a good job rather than a quick job. Every long term employee I meet has positive thing to say about the company and many have worked in BT for forty years plus!

I feel very valued because everyone has time for me. Whether it is the head of health and safety or my buddy/mentor. This comes from the fact that people stay in the company and work their way up, so most people will know what it is like to be in your shoes and so they are very empathetic.

The training program is made very clear from the start with timetables, email reminder of courses you need to attend, where I will need to be and who I will need to contact. There does however, seem to be a different manager or person in charge of every section of training and it can get confusing who you need to approach for queries.

Initially there as a big group meeting with the training provider and which set out clearly how the program was going to progress and who will be contacting me and what their role is. I now have a dedicated NVQ assessor who is in touch regularly and is clear about what is expected of me and the timeframes that I need to meet.

Support is always there. Sometimes I will need to spend time finding it myself as there is so much information available that not many people can give a definitive answer so I will have to trawl through the HR or employee information documents to find the current information for what I need. Individuals will always try to help and generally guide you rather than tell you.

The package is one of the best 'train on the job' salaries that I have found. They are always low, but considering I have been taken on with zero previous experience in the industry I feel it is a fair reward. I am not able to be lavish but I have a family and live in an expensive part of the country. It is a long time before the salary goes up to the normal company wage.

So far I have been receiving email invites to a few national events that are related to work but in a social setting. Getting to know colleagues that live nearby is tough as we all travel and tend to work on our own. I also have been allocated the patch next to the one where I live, which is not an issue for work, but I do not meet anyone who I could go to the local pub with in the evening.

Yes

I am quite a pessimist when it comes to employers delivering what they promise. So far I have not been let down by anything that has been promised and there are so many 'extras' that you can make the most of. There are also many personal and wellbeing programs that are there to help out employees who are suffering in any way. The biggest thing is that this is the first place I have worked where people are always singing the companies praises and spend their whole working live with BT.

Be honest, you do not need to pretend to be the perfect person because there is a massive array of people from all backgrounds and it is almost bazar how so many different people can fit in to the same role. I got the impression that they want to hire you so go with a positive mind set, it is your attitude to work that counts, not your previous experience.