Engineering Higher Apprentice Review
at BAE Systems
Higher Level Apprenticeship
Engineering
Portsmouth
Review Submitted: April 2022
Overall Rating
4.4 /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!
4.5/5
-
Overview of Role
4/5
-
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
When starting the apprenticeship on a day-to-day basis I was training full time, after the first 4 month I started doing placements around the companies different engineering departments. My job now consists of conducting electrical surveys such as checking previous installations and reviewing and creating technical drawings along with associated reports and quality assurance documentation.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
4/5
I really enjoy my programme, everyone I work with is friendly and if there is anything I am unsure about and don't understand people are always happy to explain in more detail.
The content of the work is interesting and engaging balancing work and college can be hard but there is a lot of support to help you achieve you academic and professional goals.
The content of the work is interesting and engaging balancing work and college can be hard but there is a lot of support to help you achieve you academic and professional goals.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
4/5
I am constantly learning new skills, there are lots of opportunities to learn new things via either talking to SQEP, completing company training courses or college academic education.
Important skills will be picked up while working such as understanding of engineering systems and reading technical drawings along with other standard business practices.
Important skills will be picked up while working such as understanding of engineering systems and reading technical drawings along with other standard business practices.
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
4/5
There is a day release to college once a week to achieve a HNC, there is also 12 weekly reviews of your progress within your placements so that you get regular feedback and know what to improve on. For the first 4 months you are training full time to help you get orientated and understand the engineering basics.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
4/5
All staff that I have interacted with have been very supportive, if you have any questions or issues people are always happy to help you or re-direct you to someone who is able to help you. There is lots of wellbeing support within the company and an apprentice forum where any potential issues can be raised.
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
4/5
When working towards your qualification the training provider was supportive, if there were any issues communications were open between the company and the college in order to solve the issue. For example if more time was needed it could be arranged for an additional day or afternoon session to be provided to help people finish their work.
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
4/5
The qualification I got from this apprentice was a HNC in general engineering accredited by Portsmouth university. I believe that this was very useful since while you will probably work with one system in engineering all systems interact so having a general knowledge is very useful especially when understanding complex system. Further education is available once you finish your apprenticeship but that is dependent on your manager and the training budget.
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
Yes there are 9 early career sports clubs where you can meet new people they are as follows; Rock Climbing, Sailing, Football, Tennis, Surfing, Netball, Karting, Badminton and squash. There are also other events such as departmental Christmas parties and an Early Careers Ball along with other events which may vary between departments.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend BAE Systems to a friend?
Yes
Why?
I would recommend BAE Systems to a friends due to the large amount of opportunities and variety of engineering work that can be experienced through the company, this is especially good if you are new to the industry trying to work out what type of engineering you personally find interesting.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to BAE Systems?
It is useful to have engineering experience from work experience or other soft skills you can draw upon to apply to an engineering setting such as team work or organisational skills for example. Speak with your college and ask for help such as practice or example interviews and having them help you with your CV.
