Aerospace Degree Apprentice Review

Going to college and doing some practical work e.g. machining and electronics and some degree level work such as mechanics and thermofluids. At the moment due to COVID-19 work is remote

Pretty much everything I’ve learnt has been new skills, I’d never done any machining/welding/practical work before and now I’ve produced about 10 pieces of work using various machines and techniques. As for the degree work, it just builds on the mechanics that I learnt at A-Level but it has been quite a step up.

It has been good but it’s quite tricky working from home, which isn’t really anyone’s fault, covid has just thrown a spanner into the works. One of the best bits have been the people, everyone is happy to help especially the apprentices in the year above who have been really great. The work is good for people who like maths and enjoy a challenge as some of the uni work has been really difficult for me personally, but other people have found it ok.

Rolls Royce have been really good and really organised and we’ve been having weekly meetings with our manager where we get a chance to raise any problems so that keeps everything running a long smoothly. We’ve not had any problems with Rolls-Royce and they’ve been quite good with all the changes cause by covid. There has been a few problems with our training providers but that’s probably due to what a crazy year it has been.

There’s a lot of support and we are told quite regularly that we can check in with our manager and there’s loads of helplines for support with mental health. Also you can join the union and join clubs/groups with other apprentices.

There is support for wellbeing and there’s lots of safeguarding teams for if you have any concerns around that. I have found that the university work has been really hard and it’s quite hard to get help with that sometimes, often we end up turning to other apprentices as a few of our lecturers sometimes don’t cooperate as much.

It is definitely useful especially coming from A-Levels you don’t know much about the practical side of things and you haven’t really studied things like thermofluids. Also we have a module where you learn CAD/CAM which is a really useful skill to have once in the business, so the qualification and the role do compliment each other.

There is an apprentice association which is a really good social opportunity where you do things like sports, socials, just go out for a drink etc. Compared with some other companies Ive seen, I’d like it if Rolls Royce did a few more social events across the company e.g. another company I know does baking competitions, meals, hikes etc across the whole company rather than just for apprentices.

Yes

It’s been really good and degree apprenticeships are a great opportunity. I’d definitely recommend a programme like this over university as you finish your degree with several years worth of business experience and loads of useful contacts. Rolls Royce have one of the most well-established degree apprenticeship schemes so they know what they’re doing.

I would say it’s not like university, it’s a full time paid job so you can’t just skip a lecture or go out every night. It is hard and there is a high workload, but as long as you’re