Project Management Degree Apprentice Review
at BAE Systems
Degree Apprenticeship
Engineering
Barrow-in-Furness
Review Submitted: April 2023
Overall Rating
3.3 /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!
3/5
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Overview of Role
3/5
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Skills Development
3.4/5
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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:
3/5
Daily, I work to understand build and engineering issues and how through risk and opportunity management with a system based insight, the SRA can be brought to the left and overall benefit our customer.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
3/5
The programme has had some enjoyable elements and some not so enjoyable elements; this relies solely on the placement in which I was placed. Overall, I have had a 50/50 split of placements that were fulfilling, challenging and developing whilst some have not engaged entirely.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
3/5
Through various placements, supported through gained academic knowledge, I have gained a large variety of skills from communication, planning, estimating, stakeholder management, leadership. The scheme has been a holistic development of project management applicable skills.
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
3/5
University structure was evident and mapped from the outset nonetheless, on-the-job experience can sometimes be sporadic and movement particularly into exit roles can be clunky.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
3/5
When support was needed, especially from a wellbeing perspective, it was excellent. However, when there were issues with university delivery, this was not always supported and changes were not made which subsequently reflected in academic grades. Support with placements and day-to-day work is good.
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
3/5
This is another element which is split between some excellent experience with some very knowledgeable tutors who go above and beyond to support achieving qualifications whilst some tutors can be less helpful and their delivery is less clear.
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
4/5
The project management experience gained is invaluable. especially when considering a future career and in principle helps with overall understanding. Nonetheless, as I work in a large, engineering focused company, our ways of working are much different to the practices we are taught and recommended.
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
There are lots of activities such as stretch, stem and countless experiences to get involved with which are useful as well as fun.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend BAE Systems to a friend?
Yes
Why?
The business has an abundance of opportunities and a culture of developing people. There are lots of academic and training opportunities with good wages and incentives.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to BAE Systems?
Understand that each apprenticeship scheme is different and that the constant changes can be an adjustment, but teams are generally supportive as you move through the scheme.
