Apprentice Software Developer Review

Working in an agile team to develop software which can vary based on placement. Taking part in a daily stand-up, tasking out work and taking on different tasks and stories, communicating with other team members to collaborate which developing, talking to product owners and stakeholders to gather requirements, coding and developing programs, writing unit tests, making deliveries to testers and stakeholders of products. Generally all of the normal roles a software developer takes on. Also must spend 20% of work hours on learning and writing coursework to meet the requirements for the apprenticeship qualification.

I have learnt lots of new skills on my apprenticeship. I completed an internal testing bootcamp where I learned programming in C#, requirements gathering and testing within the first 4 weeks of my apprenticeship. On the job I have learned how to use azure technologies such as the cloud and devops and to collaberate in a team of developers. I have learnt about development methodologies and the different job roles in software development. I have developed skills in full-stack web development, including HTML, JavaScript (with AngularJS and JQuery), CSS and SQL. I have completed a qualification in Software Development Fundamentals from BCS, and will complete another 4 qualifications within my apprenticeship, alongside the apprenticeship itself.

I enjoy my program very much. I love having the chance to properly jump into the industry and take on the role of a real developer while having the opportunity to constantly gain new skills and improve my abilities as a developer. The colleagues surrounding me including my line manager are extremely supportive, fostering a productive working and learning environment.

The programme is very well organised. We had a two-day induction to help integrate us into TfL, which was followed by a 4 week boot-camp where we were equipped with the basic skills of a software developer to allow us to enter a team to begin learning on the job. We will complete 3 x 6 month placements where we will work within different development teams to give us experience in a wide range of different technologies and skills. We have a dedicated mentor who guides us through our apprenticeship while at work as well as a learning mentor who advises and leads us in the training side of the course.

My employer is very supportive. My line manager meets with us monthly one-to-one to discuss the progress in our apprenticeship and training, our on the job productivity and even any work-life balance issues which they could support us with. We can go to our manager or our learning mentor with any issues we have and they are always willing to listen and try to help.

We receive a large amount of support from our training provider. As well as our learning mentor regularly checking in on us she also guides us in relation to our apprenticeship coursework projects and our self improvement goals for the apprenticeship. Our training provider sends us on dedicated residential courses for the exams we sit for our qualifications, which are accompanied by pre-course webinars and pre-reading material. We have unlimited access to the Pluralsight learning platform for work-related training and any training we wish to complete on our own time.

My qualification absolutely helps me perform better in my role. Through my firebrand courses I have learnt about the fundamentals of software development such as software methodologies and roles in a development team, as well as best practices for coding and how to develop secure software, which are all new ideas to me. Through my qualifications I will also have the chance to learn about C#, azure development and SQL development through residential training courses, webinars and Pluralsight.

There are lots of extracurricular activities to take part in at TfL. One of the most prominent is the regular lunch and learn sessions put on by colleagues where you can learn about anything from other parts of the company and technologies teams are working on to TfL's climate action plans. There are different Staff Network Groups at the company such as the LGBT staff network group, a mentak health group, a Faith group and more. There is also the Graduate and Apprentice committee who often put on networking events for apprentices to attend and learn new skills.

Yes

It is an excellent place to work with friendly people, lots of support and great work benefits such as free TfL travel and a very good pension scheme. Work life balance is taken seriously and TfL cares about its employees mental health and shows it through schemes like the employee helpline which you can call at any time to speak to a counsellor and recieve legal advice. The apprenticeship scheme is also excellent and I have felt fully supported in my work and my learning.

Be honest and open in your application and make sure you show your passion for the scheme you are applying for. If you want to do Software Development be ready to show that you love coding and are serious about making it your career. Show your ambition and be ready to demonstrate your thought processes when solving logical problems through a technical task. Be friendly and communicate well with the interviewers and any other candidates especially in group assessment exercises.