Rating

7.9/10
  • 1. Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:
  • I work as a Powertrain Engineering Degree Apprentice at JLR Gaydon site. I spend four days a week at Gaydon and one day a week in Trident College completing a Foundation Degree in Engineering. My daily activities are largely varied. I work as a test engineer and everyday is different: I could be programming tests, setting up test cells for upcoming tests, meeting with customers to discuss requirements etc... For the first few months of full-time work, I spent my time shadowing engineers learning the role. Now, I can operate efficiently as an engineer and contribute positively to the department's deliverables.

    9/10

  • 2. Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
  • Since starting at Jaguar Land Rover, I have learned a lot! Before embarking on the apprenticeship, I did A-Levels in physics, maths and chemistry. These subjects certainly helped me do well in college; but I didn't have much hands on experience (except tinkering with my car). College helped me to learn new, fundamental engineering skills and improve my confidence in carrying out manual activities in the workshop. I have also deepened my knowledge in mechanics, electronics, management and automotive technology thanks to lectures from the HE department. In work, I have learned to do my job role thanks to thorough training and shadowing engineers.

    8/10

  • 3. To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
  • Overall, the apprenticeship is enjoyable. I got my first choice job role and genuinely enjoy coming to work. My work colleagues are great and are always there to help when required. The college side of the programme does require improvement but I have still, overall, enjoyed the experience. The majority of the lecturers are knowledgeable, especially the ones in the workshop who are experts in their relative fields. However, there are some lecturers who have no idea what they are doing and the content is quite boring. I enjoy being challenged but the work is not too challenging.

    8/10

  • 4. How well organised/structured is your programme?
  • At Gaydon, work is extremely well organised and I know what I need to be doing throughout the day. I have a mentor who keeps me on track and ensures I am always doing something to learn/help the team. Powertrain apprentices have a dedicated team that are there for help when required. This team is great as they are always there to help if you need it and is full of genuinely nice people. However, the college is quite disorganised. The assignments are poorly spread and sometimes there seems no clear structure to the college programme.

    7/10

  • 5. How much support do you receive from your employer?
  • Jaguar Land Rover has an abundance of people who can support you throughout your apprenticeship. My colleagues are always there if I require support throughout the working days. I have a training manager who is always contactable when required. As previously mentioned, there is a dedicated powertrain apprentice team that I can go to for help. Furthermore, HR is always there if required.

    10/10

  • 6. How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
  • Warwickshire college is relatively helpful when support is required. The lecturers are always there if help is required: if they can help with the issue. There are staff who are dedicated to the JLR apprentices who are usually happy to help. However, sometimes there is some ambiguity with assignments, especially completion times/dates and this sometimes causes confusion.

    7/10

  • 7. How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
  • As aforementioned, the training received in the college workshops has helped me in my job role as I perform manual labour activities most days, including making cables, soldering, fitting and producing jigs. However, the training from college is not sufficiently tailored to the job roles throughout the business. For example, I believe I would have benefitted from a network or programming module in college. Also, there are subjects that I am taught that I will never use in the workplace.

    6/10

  • 8. Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)
  • There are some extra-curricular activities available through JLR. There is a sports club which one of my colleagues goes to weekly to play football. The team and I regularly go on professional networking events and myself and other apprentices play football twice a week. This is outside of JLR but still involves other apprentices.

    8/10

  • 9a. Would you recommend JLR to a friend?
  • Yes


  • 9b. Why?
  • Jaguar Land Rover's degree apprenticeship is a great way to start your career. Apprentices start on a very suitable salary and receive a Foundation Degree in Engineering, a BEng in Applied Engineering, an NVQ L4 and possibly accreditation in the future once the apprenticeship has been completed. Furthermore, I have met some good friends on this apprenticeship and thoroughly enjoy the challenges that my job role provides me on a daily basis.


  • 10. What tips or advice would you give to others applying to JLR?
  • There were various assessments I had to pass in order to be offered a role as an engineering degree apprentice at JLR. Firstly, there were the maths and English tests online. Prepare for these by doing some example questions. Then there was a situational judgement test, that examines how you would react to an occurrence in the workplace. Take your time with this and answer truthfully. There was then further online tests (example questions advised again). Before being offered the role, there is an assessment centre. This involves two fault finding exercises, a group exercise, further psychometric tests and a 1 on 1 interview.


Details

Degree Apprenticeship

Engineering

Gaydon

April 2019


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