Apprentice Software Engineer Review
at KPMG
Degree Apprenticeship
Engineering
Manchester
Review Submitted: February 2022
Overall Rating
4.6 /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!
5/5
-
Overview of Role
5/5
-
Skills Development
4/5
-
Structure and Support
Overview of Role
Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:
5/5
Speaking from personal experience, myself and 2 other apprentices were placed into the cloud team, which, as I understand it, was very different to those who weren't, we were actually working on projects, where they were doing theory.
In any case, when you first join the cloud sector, a lot of it is mundane tasks, but eventually you'll get rotated into a Service Team, which are much more technical. I spent the first 4 months in a team that dealt with AWS and python scripts, and the 2 months after working with a cloud language known as terraform and Azure. Overall, no day was the same
In any case, when you first join the cloud sector, a lot of it is mundane tasks, but eventually you'll get rotated into a Service Team, which are much more technical. I spent the first 4 months in a team that dealt with AWS and python scripts, and the 2 months after working with a cloud language known as terraform and Azure. Overall, no day was the same
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
5/5
I really enjoy the programme. The cloud is quite interesting, and the other employees and apprentices make it a really welcoming atmosphere. There's always someone on hand to ask for help or just talk to.
We also have weekly socials so there are a few hours when you're not working. But all in all, a very pleasant experience.
We also have weekly socials so there are a few hours when you're not working. But all in all, a very pleasant experience.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
5/5
Definitely. I had no prior experience with scripting or programming so everything I learnt has been on the job or in uni, specifically, a lot of terraform and Azure knowledge
You also learn soft skills which you don't notice until you have to write about what you've learnt. Time management especially is one of those that got better for me, you're always busy so it's a requirement.
You also learn soft skills which you don't notice until you have to write about what you've learnt. Time management especially is one of those that got better for me, you're always busy so it's a requirement.
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
4/5
From what I've seen, it's been fine. Nothing special, everything works together as it should, but one gripe I have is that a lot of the uni work you get taught is not relevant, though, in fairness, that may be due to the fact that I'm in a different sector. As for the more mainstream software engineers, as far as I'm aware, it was a bit less cohesive. They weren't doing any real work, but a lot of learning.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
4/5
Quite a lot. I have regular fortnightly catch-ups with my manager just to make sure everything's going well. I also have a less frequent catch-up with the team lead of one of the cloud teams. Aside from that, we get study days for uni and are encouraged to not work too much overtime. In fact, you have to actually get overtime cleared after a certain amount.
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
4/5
A lot. Tutors are always on hand to help with work and inside labs there's more than one tutor so you can always request assistance if you need to. Outside of that, all students get assigned a skills coach who has a review meeting with your manager and the apprentice every few months to make sure that you're progressing at a good pace.
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
4/5
This is a mixed bag. For me, like I said before, it isn't exactly the most helpful stuff we study, but overall, the concepts that you learn in uni definitely carry over to work as does the logic behind the stuff you programme so there's that. Aside form that, a few of the modules are totally unrelated and more orientated around report writing and the like, which I don't do in my day job so that's not helpful
Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)
4/5
I personally don't do much outside of work extra curricular wise but I know a lot of people who do. For one, there are a lot of societies in KPMG that you can be a part of, like the Asian Society, Muslim Society etc., they also do sports quite a lot, one that I've seen is netball among others.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend KPMG to a friend?
Yes
Why?
It's a great place to work with a really good atmosphere and to top it off friendly people. I would also say that compared to my friends who went to uni only I probably got the better end of the deal, I get paid and go to uni and work at a prestigious company.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to KPMG?
Ensure you give full effort to the application process, especially if you're not from a technical background, this means that you're competitors who are from technical backgrounds have a leg up on you from the get go which makes it all the more important to go the extra mile.
