Apprentice Technician Review
at Arup
Level 3 Apprenticeship
Civil Engineering
Bristol
Review Submitted: April 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
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Skills Development
4.4/5
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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:
5/5
The level 3 apprenticeship at Arup (Rail Team) involves lots of technical work, helping out on a wide range of projects, from local to international. The role provides training and experience in CAD, Building information Modelling and design. Day to day involves creating and managing 2D models, 3D models, drawings and health and safety documents for clients. I have also supported carbon assessments for certain projects.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
5/5
I enjoy my programme very much. Working on a range of projects provides opportunities to learn and apply your skills in many different ways. I have also had the chance to help different disciplines, including highways, structures & sustainability, which has helped me develop interests in certain areas. The people are also very easy to get along with and are always willing to help - something that is extremely valuable as an apprentice who, at first, had no experience in engineering.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
5/5
I have learned countless skills from the apprenticeship, the most considerable of which are (But not limited to):
- CAD (In applications such as Microstation, AutoCAD, Revit, Bluebeam, Rhino & Grasshopper)
- BIM (Building Information Modelling)
- Technical applications such as excel and projectwise
- Time management skills
- Presentational skills
- Communication skills
- CAD (In applications such as Microstation, AutoCAD, Revit, Bluebeam, Rhino & Grasshopper)
- BIM (Building Information Modelling)
- Technical applications such as excel and projectwise
- Time management skills
- Presentational skills
- Communication skills
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
4/5
The programme itself is quite well organised and straight forward: 4 days in the office, 1 day in college / uni. Homework / assignments are done in your own time, but there is a system to use study leave if you need it. The college sometimes took their time in sorting things out but nothing to complain about on Arup's side.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
5/5
Arup offers a great deal of support during the apprenticeship. They encourage self learning and always encourage you to ask questions. There has always someone around who's willing to lend a hand when I needed it. Mental health, equality and diversity are also big selling points for Arup.
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
4/5
My apprenticeship was done with Bridgewater & Taunton college, who were overall good at providing support. I always felt like I could ask questions and get 1 on 1 sessions if needed, and the teachers were always friendly and professional. There was a hiccup when they moved the location of the training, but other than that, I felt supported all the way through.
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
4/5
The qualification directly ties in to the role. I learned some relevant CAD software, and a lot of engineering principles that I have since used in my day-to-day. Even just understanding how certain things work is helpful in meetings and general conversation. The only comment I have is that the course is very broad, so you tend to learn about engineering concepts as a whole, rather than anything discipline-specific. For me, as a person who sits in the rail team, there are some knowledge gaps due to this.
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
Arup has lots of socials and clubs, which are all encouraged. I for one, attend the Padel club and the climbing club, both of which are subsidised by the company. There are many other sports clubs to join. In terms of socials, there are plenty that vary from small groups of people within teams, to whole teams, to whole disciplines, to the whole office. I've attended some that are simple darts and beers socials, and others that are go karting, so they vary quite a lot.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend Arup to a friend?
Yes
Why?
Arup provides excellent career-development opportunities, and is a great place to work to truly develop as an engineer. The people are great to work with (Which is the most important part of having an enjoyable job!) and the pay, for an apprenticeship, is definitely above average. The changing day-to-day, switching from project to project also keeps you on your feet and makes it so you never get bored.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to Arup?
Arup is very big on their ethics, equality and diversity. The OveCode is the big topic to look into, especially for the interview. For a level 3, they dont expect you to know anything about engineering if you have no background. They simply want to see how you would approach certain problems, which is why they give you a hypothetical scenario to discuss in the interview process. Take notes, be practical about your answers.
