Level 4 Business Admin Apprentice Review

I am a Level Four Business Administration Apprentice and I work in the Businesss Support Team (BST) two days per week, the Site Support Team two days per week, and I do distance learning one day per week. In the BST my role includes 1-1 administrative support for a colleague ( so I am responsible for her travel, calendar and expense),I cover the team mailbox one day a week (meaning i respond to any administrative task that a WSR colleague needs, such as travel, Distribution List management, expense support etc.), I coordinate the Site Work Experience Programme and I am a member of the Internal Colleague Events Team. When in the Site Support Team, I help coordinate Site Events and support the events when they're in action, I am responisble for the Weekly Site Newsletter and maintaining the site e-signs. I am also Chair of the Sandwich Apprentice Network.

I have developed so many skills, for example networking, team work, communications (both written and verbal), and many more! I have been given the opportunity to attend many training courses and development activities, such as Pfizer's own 3D Drug Development Programme which involves you in a day-long virtual game, teaching you how a drug is discovered, developed and licenced. I have also taken the Insights training course, learning about different personality types and how to adapt your manerisms and working style to suit others. I've learnt many software programmes that were new to myself, such as SharePoint, Ariba, Concur, GIMP, brainshark... the list goes on!

I adore my apprenticeship. My team are fantastic and the coursework is all relevant to my day job.

I've recieved lovely feedback from both peers, managers and clients, so I do feel valued by Pfizer. I have a really good support network of colleagues and I know that if I'm stuck they'll help me and they'll also commend me when I do a job well.

My programme is very flexible - I am expected to take on day of distance learning a week, but when I take it is my choice. When I first started at Pfizer, I was only a member of the BST, so I chose to take 2 hours study time per day. As my work load has increased and I've joined the Site Support Team, I have moved my college day to a Friday. My boss is fantastic and if I'm ever feeling overwhelled or over-worked she helps me prioritse my workload and delegate tasks if needed. I have weekly 1:1s with her to manage my progress. My college assessor comes in once a month to monitor my course work and help with any issues I have, and I have weekly coursework deadlines. This system works really well for me!

As I said, my college assessor comes in once a month for a Learner Progress Review in which we discuss any issues or concerns I may have. If i need support or help quicker than that then she's very responsive to emails and is always happy to pick up the phone and explain! I had a slight issue with getting my course modules swapped - that took a couple of months rather than the few weeks i was initially told - but we worked around it by completing coursework on other modules until the changes came into play.

I am a Pfizer contractor, I am employed by Cogent Skills, and both Pfizer and Cogent are great. My Cogent boss comes on site once a month in case any apprentices have any issues or anything they need to discuss, and he is also reasonably good at responding to email queries (sometimes you do have to chase him!). My Pfizer boss is fantastic. She's always willing to guide me if i'm stuck on anything and she's so [This section of the comment has been removed by a member of the RateMyApprenticeship Team because it did not meet our site terms and conditions] that even if i doubt my capability she knows i can do it.

I am paid above apprentice minimum wage, but I am 21 so it is the lowest paid job I've ever had - I'm not even taxed as I don't earn enough. As per wage guidelines, once I have been with Pfizer a year, my salary increases to minimum wage. I a dream world I'd like more money, as I'm doing the same job as other team members, but Pfizer do pay for my course fees so I believe my wage is fair.

YES!!! We have Mid-Year and End of Year events (this year's summer event is a circus!) as well as events organised by the apprentice committee, such as charity fun runs, quizes, cinema trips etc. All Pfizer staff are entitled to 5 vollunteering days a year, so I have a large involvement in STEM events such as school visits and careers fairs. My team have also started doing lunch time walks now the weather is good which is great. A Sandwich Pfizer initiative is called WellPlaced and they have a great focus on staff mental and physical wellbeing. Since I've been here we've had key-note speaches from [This section of the comment has been removed by a member of the RateMyApprenticeship Team because it did not meet our site terms and conditions], as well as a "wellness week" involving drop-in sessions to check blood pressure and lectures on sleep hygeine and how to manage stress.

Yes

There are so many opportunities for personal development within Pfizer, and they are very focused on home-grown tallent so if you're interested in developing certain skills they'll help you do that (in my experience!). They are also a fair employer andvalue their employees opinions.

Each Pfizer apprenticeship has a slightly different application process, but the biggest part of any application is to be yourself. If your application is successful, you'll often be invited to an applicant day/interview and I think it's important not to be daunted by the other people there. Keep a cool head and answer everything to the best of your ability and I'm sure you'll be fine!