Quality Technician Apprentice Review

Item: Quality Technician Apprentice at Babcock International Group
Rating: 4.6
Author: Anonymous

at Babcock International Group

Higher Level Apprenticeship

Data Analysis, Engineering, Manufacturing

Bristol

Review Submitted: March 2026

Overall Rating

4.6 /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!

5/5 - Overview of Role

5/5 - Skills Development

4.4/5 - 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

I have 4, 6 month placements and I have only done 1 so far. In my production placement I spend a lot of time verifying material, parts, certifications, testing, etc. against regulations, standards, and requirements. I also conduct audits on shop floor staff to ensure compliance.
I look after metrics and KPIs, analysing the data to improve manufacturing processes.
Lastly, I partake in investigations whenever things go wrong during manufacture to fix any issues, prevent them from happening again, and improve the process

To what extent do you enjoy your programme?

5/5

This apprenticeship is unlike anything I've done before and I've learned so much. Everyone in the business wants to teach me everything they can and it feels like everyone wants me to succeed.

Skills Development

Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?

5/5

I am coming to the end of my first placement and I am making a presentation to sum up everything I've learned. I started from absolute square one when I joined and the presentation has really put into perspective how far I've come. This includes:
Manufacturing process, quality principles, welding, machining, inspection, NDT, calibration, etc.
Most of this is not part of my apprenticeship, but the people here are giving me every opportunity possible to be the best quality engineer I can be through providing experience across manufacturing which will be crucial in the future

Structure and Support

How well organised/structured is your programme?

3/5

Pretty poorly. When I started the only structure was that there's 4 placement with vague lists on what I need to learn within then. I was just dropped in an office and told good luck. HOWEVER, my mentor has created a structured approach that we have both developed together to get the most out of the placements going forward. The idea is to, A, give me a better experience, and, B, improve the structure for future apprentices.
TLDR; the structure was poor when I started but was quickly improved by my mentor, which has been further developed by him and myself, so we now have a great structure for the next 3 placements

How much support do you receive from your employer?

5/5

I know for a fact that if I have a question, issues, or whatever else, everyone in the business wants to support. From senior managers, to 1st year apprentices, everyone wants to help.

How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?

5/5

My training provider is Capella PMI and my primary trainer is great. He's informative, patient, concise, etc. The reason I think I get good support is because in our progress reviews he tells me exactly what he wants to see from me which gives me great direction. He also provides honest feedback and gives me material and advice outside the bounds of my apprenticeship so I can make the best work possible.

How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?

4/5

Hard to say. At the beginning college and the job seemed completed unrelated. But as time went on and I saw more of the business and learned more from college, I saw more and more links between the two. There are still areas of college I have not yet seen in work but I am confident I will in time.

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

There are a lot of social activities organised and paid for by the business. They're a great way to see others that you may not normally work with. They're frequent and fun and good for networking.
The same can be said for the 22 hours of STEM events we need to complete. 9/10 times I was doing careers fair across different schools which gave me the opportunity to work with other new starters that I wouldn't normally interact with