Technical Apprentice Review

My role as a technologist in Dairy involves looking after the quality, safety and legality of own brand Tesco dairy products. Day to day, this involves reviewing products, building relationships with suppliers and visiting factories to ensure that the products are being manufactured to the agreed standard. I am allowed 20% of my time at work to be used for university work.

I learn am given the opportunity to build on existing skills as well as develop new skills everyday. On top of my university studies, there are opportunities to go on internal Tesco training courses, which can cover areas such as empathy, innovation, resilience, presenting with confidence etc. I have also been on upskill days at factories where I am able to learn more about the food manufacturing side of things.

I very much enjoy my programme as the areas that I am learning about are of great interest to me. the work culture is extremely friendly and I am constantly encourages to try new things and participate in group projects. Although the workload can be quite a lot at times, I am sure this will benefit me in the long run.

Considering this is the first year that my specific programme has been run, it is very well organised. There have been no major obstacles in the past 6 months, which has made the process of settling in much easier! Although there is sometimes a lack of communication from the university that I am doing my degree with, it is easier enough to email them for clarification on anything involving lectures, assignments or portfolios.

I receive a massive amount of support from my employer. Within Tesco there is an Apprenticeship and Graduate team who are always available if I have any questions or issues. On top of this my line manager is greatly supportive and is always eager to help with my learning and development for both my day to day job and for my university work

From my university, I receive a fair amount of support. The lectures are posted on a regular basis, making it easy to plan in time for me to do them. However, some of the information in the lectures can be quite vague. We are also warned ahead of time of any upcoming assignments, although the briefs are often unclear of what we actually need to focus on. The tutors are usually helpful with explaining things in more detail, but it would be better if they could give this detail from the off.

So far I have found that my day to day job assists me with my university work more than the other way around. As my job is quite niche, there are few modules that relate directly to my job. However, as Tesco is a large company there are many internal people with expansive knowledge, who I am able to contact if i have a query on a specific module or assignment.

There are regular extracurricular held at work, involving sports, baking competitions and team days. These are usually informal, but are still take quite seriously due to everyone's level of competitiveness! On top of this, people regularly go out for drinks after work, where everyone is welcome. Occasionally, there are also social events arranged for apprentices and graduates specifically.

Yes

Tesco has an extremely supportive culture for learning and development as everyone who works here is friendly and eager to educate you in their area. There are endless opportunities to upskill yourself in whichever area you are in, as well as being able to network and build relationships with people both internally and externally.

The main piece of advice that I would give is to not be nervous, as there is no reason to be. Everyone within Tesco is extremely encouraging and supportive and just wants you to perform and develop as best you can. Also, take as many opportunities as you can as early as you can, because the sooner you build your confidence, the easier the process of applying will become.