Support Engineer Review
at BAE Systems
Level 3 Apprenticeship
Engineering
Barrow-in-Furness
Review Submitted: March 2025
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
-
Overview of Role
3/5
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Skills Development
2.4/5
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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
Within the first year I am based at Furness College where I have a set of lessons to do on Monday and Tuesday, then I am in the college workshops from Wednesday to Friday. The lessons that I do are Communications, Mechanical principles, Electrical principles, Drawing and CAD, Project, Health and Safety and Maths. The workshops that I go to are the mechanical, electrical and welding workshops, although the workshops are on a rotation so I only go to another workshop after each college term.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
2/5
The business side of the programme has not been explored yet, and the college has been very unorganised, especially within the workshops because we had not been informed of what tasks we needed to have completed within each workshop until the first term was almost over. The confusion continued further because the information we were told changed often.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
3/5
I have learned how to use a pillar drill, how to properly use a file, hacksaw and tap. I also have learned how to use AutoCAD and Inventor to make engineering drawings and 3D models
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
2/5
College has not been very organised in the workshop, although the lessons have been better
How much support do you receive from your employer?
3/5
We have received varying amounts of support from the business, with information about the workshops taking longer to have any effect in college. When people mentioned that they were falling behind with maths, people from the business volunteered to help give intervention lessons to cover the content
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
3/5
This has already been mentioned in above questions
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
2/5
Most of the tasks we complete in college will help me understand the processes involved with making components, although it doesn’t directly help with doing my job 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.)
2/5
There have been events during half terms to get holidays back, whilst also getting an opportunity to go into the business slightly to get more comfortable with what we will be doing once we are done at college.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend BAE Systems to a friend?
Yes
Why?
Despite the difficulty within college, the apprenticeship will still provide an excellent opportunity to learn new skills.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to BAE Systems?
Ensure that before applying, be aware of what will be done during the apprenticeship and have examples ready for the interview that links to the BAE behaviours and core values.
