Apprentice Dental Nurse Review
at Aspiration Training
Level 3 Apprenticeship
Healthcare
Reading
Review Submitted: May 2021
Overall Rating
2.6 /5
The Overall Rating is the average of all the ratings given in each category. We take those individual ratings and combine them into one final score!
2.5/5
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Overview of Role
4/5
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Skills Development
2.2/5
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Structure and Support
Overview of Role
Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:
4/5
Working in dental practice learning to be a dental nurse. Providing support to dentists and patients. Cleaning and decontamination of instruments. Helping out on reception checking in patients and taking medical history surveys. Keeping the dental surgeries stocked and preparing them for each treatment and procedure ad and when needed.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
1/5
Enjoy the programme as I enjoy learning new things but think the apprenticeship is really badly organised. The first assessor we were set was a bit full on and as I still had to complete my key skills I felt very bogged down with work. We were moved to another assessor who was the complete opposite and didn't have any determination to get us through the course and now we've been left with no assessor, effectively putting our course on hold.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
4/5
Yes, learnt a lot of new skills so far. As I came from a completely different background, practically every thing I do is a new skill for me. On top of this I feel as though I'm improving on people skills as well as furthering my knowledge of customer services.
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
1/5
Very poor, we've been passed onto several assessors now and each has been extremely different in their approach to the course. This has left us all feeling a little un supported and unsure as to whether one was right and the others wrong and feeling very uneasy about the projected length of course.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
5/5
I think our employer is great and I feel that they generally do every thing they can to help us through the course in spite of the evident lack of support from our course providers (aspiration). The best thing about the course has been the employers so far without a doubt
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
1/5
Very little support has been given from aspiration in regards to the dental nurse course. My assessor for key skills development was brilliant and helped me to pass my English and maths exams with little trouble. But as I have mentioned previously, swapping and changing assessors and lack of communication has made the dental nurse course itself quite difficult.
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
1/5
In general, we have learnt far more from the practical side of the course than the education itself. We're lucky to get half an hour of education every couple of months. Most of what has been learnt has been done ourselves using resources provided by the dental practice and Google searches.
Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)
3/5
The dental practice we work at is very social and are often arranging bbq's and gatherings for the staff. I've also opted to take on extra hours outside of my apprenticeship to help the practice. The course providers haven't attempted to deliver any extra curricular activities at all
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend Aspiration Training to a friend?
No
Why?
As previously stated a number of times now, the organisation of our apprenticeship has seemed extremely sporadic and there has been a considerable lack of support. If I had the choice I would have done this apprenticeship with a different company as other apprentices at the practice have stated that they've had a better experience with different companies.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to Aspiration Training?
My advice would be to be prepared to do everything on your own as there is a definite lack of support and organisation. All they seem to do is set workbooks periodically and presume we can teach ourselves the course material. Training sessions have been offered but they have limited time/space so if you have any sort of a life outside of your job you'll struggle to participate. Everything must be done in your own time and are advised to 'pad out' off the job training records.
