Degree Apprentice Review

I am a Degree Apprentice with JLR, working first towards a FdEng and then A BEng, along with level 2 and 4 NVQs. Initially the course is completely college based, with a few weeks in plant here and there. Upon the start of the second year college will be day release, and I will become a permanent part of my team in plant, working on exactly the same projects as them, as well as some of my own for my various qualifications. Being in my first year, my only current responsibility is to study.

As part of my course, I have learnt various engineering operations, including many workshops such as milling, fitting, welding, etc... I have developed study skills and teamworking skills, and whilst in plant learnt what sort of operations I will be carrying out, as well as the things I have yet to learn to be able to successfully undertake them.

The social group of my years apprentices is very strong, and this leads to a good atmosphere at college. Within work, everyone is friendly and makes sure you feel comfortable with what you're doing. The company definitely look after their employees.

I feel valued by JLR thanks to their excellent employee programs and pay. An example of this is the ELS scheme ran to allow all employees to learn new skills outside of work.

My program initially seems very structured and organised, however, there is a fair level of confusion every now and then. This is primarily caused by the companies innovation with apprenticeships, trying out new ideas such as this years trailblazer, this can effect studies. Within work, my team are highly organised and I feel my projects will be well supervised.

The training provider has a variety of lecturers and teachers, and they all have various degrees of support that they will provide. Naturally this varies from tutor to tutor. Outside of study modules, there is a very clear system to provide feedback, and feedback has been acted upon in the past.

If I ever have a problem, there is a strong support system of training managers to assist and try to resolve issues. These are available at any time, and make it their aim to try and make things run smoothly.

The salary is the best I have ever seen in terms of apprenticeships, and adequately covers all costs. It also scales as the program progresses

JLR have various classes that can be taken, and departments also arrange socials for the team. People within work are always happy to get involved in social activities. The area around work also has plenty of opportunities for other activities.

Yes

With modern uni costs, a JLR apprenticeship provides an opportunity to learn and earn at a very good rate. It is also allowing you to earn relevant work experience at the same time as studying. If you want to study engineering, it is the clearly most beneficial way to do so

With the number of people applying, it is quite competitive to get in. Make sure you prepare as much as possible before hand, not just with aptitude but also make sure you think about your character and examples of your good points. Also make sure on the assessment day you relax, and just be yourself.