Mechanical Fitter Review

I am currently at college Monday-Friday with academic subjects Monday and Tuesday then PEO Wednesday-Friday. This year I am on track to achieve a Level 6 NC in Mechanical Engineering. We have recently had another academic subject added in called Shipbuilding which is where most of our focus is now as we have an exam for it soon. Once we have completed this years course we will go onto the skills centre at the yard in either Scotstoun or Govan.

I have learned lots of new skills at college. I have never done engineering before so a lot of my subjects were new to me and I have passed them all so far, when I done joinery I used some of the tools we used in the workshop but most of the equipment was new. I have new learning skills, practical skills and have developed my personal skills.

I prefer the practical side of things compared to the academics purely because I stress easily when I study and it reminds me of school but I have enjoyed the course. I am just excited now to get on to the shipyard, meet the team and get my hands dirty.

Personally I feel like it could have been structured better. We started off as a small class then a few weeks in got merged with some pipefitters. On the days the college are on holiday and we are in the yard it seems they are struggling to find us things to do so it can be quite boring. The timetable in college has been changed loads and there have been lots of mix ups so I feel that some things could be organised better.

I receive full support from my employer. We have our manager in college for us every Wednesday, we have 2 main contacts where we can go if we have any issues, we can arrange meetings to discuss anything on our minds, we have been given a list of numbers we can call like helplines within the company.

The lecturers are very helpful especially if you ask questions or need additional help. They have plenty of time for us and will explain something a hundred times if they need to. They are also very approachable which makes it easier to ask for help if I’m struggling. We also get a guidance session where we can bring up any issues we have and they will get smoothed out.

I believe this qualification will help me perform better as I will be confident when people are talking to me about technical terms, I will be able to understand drawings, I will have knowledge about ships, I’ll be competent on the tools I think my overall performance will be better than it would’ve if I didn’t have this qualification.

I am unsure if there is anything like this at BAE but there are lots of activities always coming up in the college. In school I used to be one who would go to them all but now being a bit older I have other commitments at home and outwith college so I just don’t have the time to participate.

Yes

I think this is a brilliant company to work for. Whenever you say to someone you work for BAE they know it right away because it has such a good reputation. It is a massive company and I believe it will have tons of opportunity for me to develop and grow.

Advice I would give to others applying to BAE systems is do your research to make sure you go for the correct trade, be yourself, try your best, know what you want and be determined to get it, answer questions promptly and honest do not overthink it and believe in yourself don’t give up.