Permanent Way Apprentice Review

Working with the technical engineers to carry out plans and preparations for construction of the railway renewal job specification. Working with Network Rail (the customer) to complete the construction work to their standards and expectations. Responsible for the planning of construction and reviewing the designs provided by Colas Rail Design Team.

Skills learned: 1. Public speaking and presenting to a group of people which requires a lot of self confidence. 2. My ability to accept and learn from criticism. Skills developed: 1. Flexibility and adaptability: i have developed my ability to manage and undertake multiple tasks at the same time and being flexible enough to work under ever changing conditions. 2. My ability to build relationships with people around me under any circumstances

What I like the most about my job, it involves a lot of problem solving and numbers & spreadsheets. I’ve always enjoyed problem solving and I am always discovering new Excel features, which serves to remind me how little I actually know about the applications full capabilities. My company also pays for outside training. This way I can enhance my skills.

The Level 3 P-Way apprenticeship scheme is well structured in my opinion because of the training system which is in block releases (every 4-6 weeks, 5 days at a time) rather than one or two days a week. This way as a learner I am able to learn the from Monday to Friday then apply my new skills to my job.

I receive a great amount of support whether I do or do not need it. Assistance is available from my receptionist in my office all the way to my trainers in other areas of the country. My colleagues in the office are more than happy to help with answering any questions I may have or difficulties I may come across.

My training provider gives me a huge amount of support to aid me in the direction of achieving my qualifications. He makes learning easy because his teaching style is not always class room based but it is also engaging and enjoyable which makes learning a lot more easier. He also offers out of hours help so he goes out of his way to help plus above and beyond.

My qualification sets me up well to perform exceptionally well in my job role because it covers all the topics in which make a good railway technical engineer which is the job role I am working towards. I am gradually becoming a better technical engineer which is noticeable by myself and my mentors so this is satisfying,

There are various activities which go on for example the Colas Rail football tournament every summer. This is fun and enjoyable because we learn a lot about one another as colleagues and we are able to get together and have some time of work which is sometimes needed in such a demanding industry.

Yes

I would refer a friend to Colas Rail because they are a good company to work for simply because they look after each and every one of their employees. They also trust that their employees generally want to succeed and if they feel they need some training, they will provide this at their own expense.

What I would advise is to be yourself and sell yourself in your application process. I advise you provide a cover letter of some relevance to the job role in which you are applying for. For example if you are applying for a technical role you can include a problematic success scenario in which you was able to demonstrate some key skills which Colas Rail are looking for.