Apprentice Application Developer Review

As an apprentice applications developer I work as part of a team to develop new and exciting features and improvements to PebblePad's core products. This involves working with our customers and internal staff to decide on new features, changes and improvements to the PebblePad platform and then designing and implementing them.

At PebblePad they have a wide and extensive training program to train all new apprentices to get them up to speed with the technologies that they will be using as developers at the company. The first six months are packed with unique and different projects that the apprentice team is tasked with completing and these help cover a range of technologies to help build the apprentices skills. Lots of workshops and internal training sessions are also held to help up skill new apprentices. During this apprenticship I have also developed my team working, public speaking and social skills.

Overall I really enjoyed this programme. The work that we do can be challenging but very satisfying and interesting and the team that I have got to work with whilst I have been here has been amazing. The company culture is really positive at PebblePad with a great atmosphere of dedicated professionals who are passionate about their jobs and the products they work on but can still have a laugh along the way.

When looking at how organised/structured the programme is from the employer side of things the apprenticeship has been handled really well. There has been a consistent roadmap and plan of what PebblePad intended for us to learn and where we should be at certain points in our apprenticeship and there has been loads of support from our line manager/apprentice lead who has supported our training and helps us in any way he can to ensure that the programme runs smoothly.

PebblePad goes up and beyond to ensure that their apprentices are well supported throughout their apprenticeship. They assign mentors to each apprentice when they start to give them someone to ask questions to as well as help support them in their work. The apprentice lead is also entirely dedicated to supporting the apprentices to ensure that all of their concerns are heard, feedback is taken and any issues they may have are resolved.

Overall the support form Wolverhampton University has been a bit poor, manageable but poor. Their communication is pretty bad to the extent that they promise to email you about a concern you might have and then never get back to you. They very rarely tell you what is going on and it requires lots of pressure and insistent nagging to get information from them for even basic things such as what is the assignment spec. If it wasn't for PebblePad this part of the apprenticeship would be a mess because PebblePad has been stellar in pressuring wolverhampton university into making changes and fixing problems that we have had with the course.

The qualification is not really helping me to perform my role any better. I found that in the first six months of being an apprentice at PebblePad I had advanced so much in my knowledge, skills and understanding of software development that everything that Wolverhampton University was teaching me felt too easy and basic.

Every year PebblePad holds a PebbleBash where the company goes out for the day and it usually involves some activity to take part in and then a meal at the end of the day. PebblePad also has other events from time to time and team building exercises for example my team once went to Alton towers for the day. PebblePad also lets employees stay at work and use the facilities on a Friday to give them time to work on any personal projects they might have and even pays for food is they want it. This is great for those who like to have their own little projects in their own time. Many of the employees at PebblePad are also gamers so a fair few often play games together outside of work.

Yes

The people at the company are really great and fun to work with and the general atmosphere of the company is really positive and fun. I never wake up in the morning and find it hard to get out of bed to come to work. PebblePad is also a really great place to start your career because they take the time and effort needed to help train and build up new staff.

If you want to apply to PebblePad don't worry about not being the best programmer and not having loads of technical knowledge because this is the sort of stuff PebblePad will teach you. Instead ensure that you are enthusiastic about the prospects of getting the job and show dedication and a willingness to learn.