Chemical Engineering Degree Apprentice Review
at Unilever
Higher Level Apprenticeship
Engineering
Liverpool
Review Submitted: May 2022
Overall Rating
4.3 /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
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Overview of Role
5/5
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Skills Development
3.6/5
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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:
5/5
I work as a process engineer focused on the improvement of the process in production of a factory, as well as a number of other Research and Development teams to develop new products and further existing products. I interact with managers, directors and other process engineers, to gain knowledge from them and further my learning from a work perspective. I help manage and support projects critical to the business and have a responsibility to help the company continue to produce it's products
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
5/5
I have loved each of the three teams I've been in so far, in each rotation the culture and ethics of the company have been present. Everyone wants to further and develop each other, and present a healthy challenge to each other. I thoroughly recommend and enjoy it to anyone my age
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
5/5
not only have I been working toward my degree while working for unilever, but I have also partaken in courses that help develop me personally. there are courses I plan to take as a first aider, mental health first aider and fire warden, all of which i don't believe someone of a similar age to me would not be able to access if they were working at a different company
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
3/5
I'd say there's a mixed bag, at times the work side and support from the company is faultless, but the training provider isn't as well orientated to supporting apprentices as they are to full time students, they have improved over 3 years but there are a number of occasions where I have been behind as a result of lack of support
How much support do you receive from your employer?
5/5
Incredible. Each placement has a manger to support my day to day work and life, as well as mentors around me to help me develop, discover problem solving solutions and help me grow as an engineer. I've had great support with mental health issues and work has given me the proper support to access and use the tools they provide
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
2/5
again, a mixed bag, at times brilliant support, and there are a few occasions where the support has been lacking, the team have been improving and they now have quarterly reviews as they should be doing but there have been a number of gaps. i still enjoy the course, but don't like feeling like I'm in second place to other students at times
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
3/5
There are a number of things in the programme and as part of my qualification that apply and I use daily to help with my role as a process engineer, but a number of the training provider's qualifications are more orientated to different sectors of chemical engineering. this is still a development opportunity but represents an issue of lack of application to my current role
Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)
5/5
Plenty, the site I'm working on currently is working on creating more, and with COVID most teams developed new methods of staying in touch such as virtual quizzes, crossword puzzles online together, coffee breaks and various others to help keep normality. there's also going to be an inter-disciplinary and inter-company football tournament
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend Unilever to a friend?
Yes
Why?
Unilever has always been a huge foundation for my family, and it's now the same for me. It presents growth opportunity for me in a huge number of ways, I have now been given a number of opportunities that nobody else I know my age is getting offered, nor have the same experience at the same age
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to Unilever?
Be yourself, the truest reflection of you will be the deciding factor of whether you are hired for the company, especially at an interview stage. The other stages are for assessing whether you are technically qualified, the interview is for assessing your interpersonal skills, how you interact with your potential new bosses, and the other people in your team
