Higher Apprentice Review

I work in the engineering department at Siemens mobility and most of my day is spent working on solving engineering problems as they arise. I work on a rotational apprenticeship so I have been moving around the different areas of the business to find an area that suits my skills and is also a good fit for the business.

I've done different training modules that have given me more experience in relevent areas, some of the internal training I've done are courses that relate to my job (Traffic principles and electrical vehicle charging etc) but also some external courses in electrical wiring, CAD design and test procedures.

I've enjoyed the way that the departments have made me feel part of the team and allowed me to get involved very quickly. Most people at Siemens are positive about apprentices but there is a bit of a devide in how apprentices are treated vs how graduates and interns are treated. I think that because they are trained to a higher level they often give the grads more perks.

Although my apprenticeship has been fairly well structured its not been the best in my opinion. Much of the last few years of my apprenticeship has been spent in irrelevent departments so that now I'm getting closer to the end of the apprenticeship I could have done with more time in the department I was destined forso that I had time to build relationships with the managers that I'm hoping will hire me.

The level of support is varied and the structures are inplace but I'm not sure how well known they are. I've been told that I will be supported in getting a job at the end of the apprenticeship but the people I've been told to speak to haven't been proactive in actually helping.

My training provider has been good with the support level I've needed although I've not needed much, If I needed more support I'm sure they would be happy to help but again I'm not sure how well that would translate into meaningful, practical support or what that would look like.

My qualifacation has helped me with learning the very basics of some areas of my job role. It gives me the principles that allow me to hopfully build on in the future when I've got a secure job in the right area. I'm sure that other employers would also value my qualifacation.

There are lots of extra-currucular activities to get involved in at work but it does hugely depend on what area of the business you work in. There is table tennis, poole tables, football, unicycling and running clubs that most people working in the office are able to get involved in but anyone that works in the Field Service or Manufacturing departments will struggle to join in with due to different demands in job role which I don't think gets advertised very well.

Yes

Working for a big company will allow you to go far in your career because everyone knows the reputation of the company. There are some good perks as well but it is VERY dependant on what part of the business you work in. An unfortunetly the field engineers/factory workers don't get paid more for the perks that they miss out on.

Don't stress about the process, do your best and remember that it is your oppertunity to assess the business as well so ask questions about products and what working in the area you are applying for is like. They are looking for people that are teachable so you don't need to know all the answers.