My name is Akash, and I’m currently one of the Higher Apprentices (HAs) in Digital from the July 2013 intake. I’m currently based in the London, Southbank office. I hope to provide an insight into what life at Capgemini is like on a day-to-day basis and hopefully give you a better understanding of what to expect if you joined.

Leaving school and entering the world of work is no doubt daunting, however I was surprised to learn that it wasn’t as menacing as I’d previously anticipated. Prior to joining, some new starters set up an online Facebook group and this certainly helped us to identify others who would be based in the same location, as well as those in the same department. Ultimately, this helped ease my nerves as I got to know several individuals before our induction started.

Our first week consisted of an induction giving us a background of the company, such as the structure, as well as talks about each department and how they all interact with each other within Capgemini. It proved to be an informative week, and another chance to address any hesitations we had at this stage. The induction was a great chance to meet other Higher Apprentices and Graduates from all across the country.

Capgemini provide their own training course. The training, referred to as an ‘Accelerated Learning Environment’ is designed to prepare you to be client ready and lasts 13 weeks. This typically tends to be training with others from your department. All new starters are based on campus during this duration. I felt I bonded well with HA’s from other offices, which really helps, especially as you may end up working with them in the future! A notable mention should be given to the desserts on offer every night. It took quite some self restraint not to go for the chocolate cake, donuts, profiteroles or all sorts of wonderful desserts every night!

I think that leads up to where I’ve reached at the moment, I intend to inform you guys about what sort of project work I’ll be getting on with, as well as others from my intake, in future posts and additionally why you should consider the Higher Apprentice scheme as an alternative to university.