Finance Apprentice Review

Item: Finance Apprentice at BAE Systems
Rating: 4.8
Author: Anonymous

at BAE Systems

Degree Apprenticeship

Finance

Warton, Lancashire

Review Submitted: April 2026

Overall Rating

4.8 /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

4.6/5 - 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

The finance apprenticeship is a 5 year scheme (2 years on level 4 & 3 years on level 7). At the end of the apprenticeship I will have a Level 7 CIMA qualification. Each year we will have a different placement where we will learn new processes tasks and skills. Having 5 different placements over 5 years is great as it allows me to get exposure to lots of different teams and areas that all take care of different things. My first placement was a transactional role around processing invoices and answering the relevant queries, the placement I am in now is a project accounting role which is completely different, and allows me to get experience in important project accounting tasks. Having different placements is great as it allows me to see which areas I most enjoy and also what areas I could seek development in.

To what extent do you enjoy your programme?

5/5

I really enjoy the apprenticeship program for many reasons, firstly when I have an upcoming exam, the company allows us to have study days, which are days away from our day to day tasks to complete revision prior to an exam. Being able to have these study days is great as it doesn't force you to squeeze all revision in on weekends and after work. It allows me to do all the revision needed and therefore allows me to be more confident in the exam without having to carve out hours of my personal life. The placements that I have been in so far are great, everyone is supportive and always willing to help. The tasks and processes that occur in the placement, have developed my skills and behaviours drastically and now feel like I am able to communicate clearer and with more confidence. Overall, I think it is a great scheme and I am really enjoying it.

Skills Development

Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?

5/5

Since joining the apprenticeship my knowledge, skills and behaviours have improved lots in all areas. I have learnt how generic finance processes work which I will be able to apply in any finance roll I go into. I feel like I am able to talk on more complex tasks and areas with confidence as I have built the skills to be able to understand the task. My proactivity and communication are two key skills that have improved, not only does this help in the work environment but it also helps in personal life and with exam etc. Overall, I feel I have developed so much so far on the apprenticeship and feel like I will develop a lot more.

Structure and Support

How well organised/structured is your programme?

5/5

The program is very well structured, even from enrolment. They always communicated what needed doing during enrolment and also on the induction week. I know what I will be doing apprenticeship wise before hand which builds confidence. I know what exams I will be completing and the order to allow me to prepare. Overall it is really well structured program.

How much support do you receive from your employer?

5/5

I receive lots of support from my employer. If I have any questions relating to my placement, my team are always happy to help and develop my knowledge so I am able to complete it with less assistance next time. Everyone is really supportive and always happy to help which allows for a phycological safe space.

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

5/5

Kaplan are the training provider for this apprenticeship. The teachers for the lessons have been great so far, always happy to answer my questions during the lesson. The materials that they provide are excellent. It has all the content in an understandable way, then on the Kaplan site, there are lots of materials like exam questions, additional videos etc which all provide more confidence ahead of the exam.

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

4/5

It definitely allows me to perform better in my role. Even though quite a bit of the stuff I have learned with Kaplan, I haven't yet applied it to my role. Each placement at work will be centred around different things, so one year I may apply lots of knowledge I learned through Kaplan, whereas some placements I wont be able to apply it as much. Overall, all the learning at Kaplan, helps in some way even if it is just understanding the business and looking at the tasks that are completed in other areas.

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 quite a lot of social activities outside of work, whether that be with other apprentices or other members of my team. There are always notifications on social activities to get involved in which is great as it allows you to get to know the people you work with better.

Recommendations & Advice

Would you recommend BAE Systems to a friend?

Yes

Why?

For all the reasons stated on the previous pages, overall it is a fantastic scheme that develops your knowledge, skills and behaviours in a professional and personal way. At the end of the scheme you will finish with a great qualification that is sought after a lot by businesses. I also really enjoy the scheme, being surrounded by supportive colleagues.

What tips or advice would you give to others applying to BAE Systems?

I always want to learn which is great at BAE as there is so much to learn. The company is so big and there are so many areas, meaning that there is always new things to learn. It is a fantastic scheme and I would encourage anyone to apply. At sixth form I did accounting, economics and statistics, some of the content learned here applied to CIMA meaning I was able to understand the content more having done it in the past.

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