Civil Engineering Degree Apprentice Review
at Mott MacDonald
Degree Apprenticeship
Civil Engineering
Cambridge
Review Submitted: April 2025
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!
4/5
-
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:
4/5
As I am in my first year, I spend most of my time helping the civil engineers with admin and minor setup tasks, ensuring a wide enough range to provide material for the various ICE IPD attributes - CAD drawings, technical notes, audit reviews and client meetings.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
4/5
I frequently find my programme very intense to keep up with, as expected for a simultaneous full time job and degree. However, I enjoy the constant opportunities to learn and develop, and the way the programme always both pushes and supports me to do my best.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
4/5
I have teaching materials and time available for each new software package I use and type of project/task. My line manager also ensures to point out skill areas that need development and suggest how I can work on them. This has included CAD, networking, sustainable design, handling clients and generally expanding my knowledge of the civil engineering field.
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
3/5
While my degree programme feels well organised in terms of material and teaching quality, I find that my training provider frequently fails to communicate important information as far ahead of time as would be useful, and often seems to treat the apprenticeship programme as an afterthought compared to the regular degree students.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
5/5
My employer has been highly supportive with my job role, my university work and my accessibility needs, setting a very high standard especially with the latter; I have very much appreciated how much they work to enable me to keep up with such an intense programme while disabled.
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
4/5
While their system is often not set up to help disabled students succeed, including not making lecture notes available ahead of time and structuring long intense days, they do listen to student feedback (including reducing lecture days to 9-5 hours) and have been efficient in implementing the disability accommodations I have requested. They are also proactive in ensuring that students have frequent opportunities to raise concerns and give feedback.
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
3/5
Thus far there has not been much overlap between my degree course and my job role. However, the degree has included at least one module specifically training us to use civil engineering software to solve the kinds of problems we encounter, so I am confident that the qualification will be relevant to the role later on.
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
My employer has a wide range of all sorts of extra-curricular activities, including various different sports and wellbeing events, plus frequent lunchtime CPD events where external speakers present on aspects of civil engineering. They also host events at offices over the UK, creating opportunities to meet other colleagues from our divisions.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend Mott MacDonald to a friend?
Yes
Why?
Mott MacDonald have been meticulous and proactive in supporting their degree apprentices, and are experienced in implementing the programme. They also have a very wide range of projects and opportunities to get involved with them. While you will ultimately get out of the apprenticeship what you put into it, Mott MacDonald take great care to not let you fall by the wayside and give you the best possible chances of enrichment and success.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to Mott MacDonald?
Research their projects beforehand, make sure there's at least one thing they've worked on that genuinely excites you before applying. Bring energy and an eagerness to learn and grow. Keep your endpoint assessment in mind at all times, including right at the beginning, so that you can tailor your work and growth towards it and have an easier time down the road. Speak up early about both things that help you and things that hinder you, so that they know how best to support you.
