Matthew Mills – Atkins

I decided to become an Apprentice Engineer as I wanted to work in an industry that is ever changing and provides a challenge. It also enabled me to learn on the job whilst developing my theoretical knowledge at College. Working as an engineer creates a lot of job prospects for later life given how broad the industry is.

A typical day for an Apprentice Engineer will involve listening, learning and replicating tasks provided and checked by senior engineers. This helps to develop a deeper understanding of what may be required on a project and allows you to retain technical information to use throughout your career. When you start as an Apprentice a lot of the software and terminology used may be overwhelming however being exposed to this on a day to day basis allows you to pick up on it quickly.

The thing I enjoy most about my job is the number of different routes you can take as you develop your career, specialising in a certain discipline and project types. I have been exposed to different disciplines and project types over my two years which has helped me identify the route I wish to take with my career as a building services engineer.

The End Point Assessment was the last step that enabled me to complete my Level 3 Apprenticeship. At the time of me joining Atkins, the Level 3 Apprenticeship Standard was new and therefore not many people were currently undertaking it.

In terms of preparing for the End Point Assessment I had to first find out when the assignments were to be handed out as well as other various pieces of information required to start the process. This was important as the start date of University was approaching and information on the End Point Assessment was yet to be released.

I had generated my written report in advance and therefore had saved myself some time to focus on the presentation. Once I had received the presentation assignment, I generated slides that corresponded with the pass criteria provided by CIBSE. This allowed me to create a presentation that focused on the essentials which was important as the presentation had to be a maximum of 10 minutes long. I created my first draft and presented to principle engineers who highlighted areas that needed work and areas that may take up too much time during the presentation. I also chose to create an information pack which was to be read in conjunction with my presentation, this helped me to illustrate the design I had produced as well as meet some of the criteria for the End Point Assessment.

Now that I have completed my Level 3 Apprenticeship, I am currently in my first year of my Degree Apprenticeship studying Building Services Engineering at London South Bank University.

Katie McQuade – WSP

I decided to follow the route of an Apprenticeship in engineering because I wanted to be able to get the hands-on skills and the theoretical knowledge of engineering, this is to help me excel in my career in the future having the right experience. This also helped for you to be able to broaden your horizons within engineering, there are so many different routes you can go down, it helps to give you a better understanding of which path you want to take to what suits how you work the most.

Each day can be different in my line of work and that is why it is so enjoyable, it all depends on the projects I am working on. My main tasks in the office are the designing and modelling the projects on a 3D Software called Revit and creating 3D real life visualisations of the pre-constructed project on Infraworks. With all the different types of projects which pass through our office, I have been able to get a good understanding and skill set on a range of different types of buildings, from Steel portal frame buildings and understanding how they are designed, constructed and how they work, to reinforced concrete buildings. Not only do I enjoy the range of projects I can work on, but working in a good team helps my experience, I know I can communicate well with them and they help me to constantly grow as a person and as an engineer.

I had STEGTA work alongside my employer throughout the full two years of my Apprenticeship. They both worked closely with me to ensure I was gaining enough experience in my work, that I was achieving the correct grades to pass all of my qualifications and helping me if needs be, and also getting me to the final goal of the two year – to sit my End Point Assessment. The End Point Assessment seemed a daunting process to begin with, due to the fact no one had ever sat this specific assessment before. I prepared by planning all of my information rough and trying different solutions to finally be able to come up with my final overall presentation.

I am already studying for my BEng Civil Engineering at Teesside University – once I have got my Bachelors degree, I will then study towards my masters and chartership as a structural engineer.

We received a message today from one of our previous learners – Nathan Lancaster. “So I arrived on site this morning and I got talking to one of the sparkys and he was asking how long I had been set up on my own, how I was finding it etc and he made a very valid point … he said “you must of had some good teachers behind you to prepare you so well” and it got me thinking, I did, my employer through my apprenticeship was brilliant, so was my college, however the one party that doesn’t get as much recognition is the training provider, no one ever asks “who was your training provider” and I think that’s the most important one! I had an amazing mentor throughout my apprenticeship and even now I can rely on him if I’m second guessing something, When I told him I was starting my own business he said, “go for it” not “are you sure that’s wise” he told me to “go for it”. STEGTA where a brilliant company and without them I wouldn’t of succeeded with my apprenticeship to the standard that I did. More recognition should be given to these people and all that they do for young people. A special Thankyou to Ian Coward from Stegta for giving me the kick I needed so many times when I was younger! Apprenticeships are so important, they are building futures for so many people!!”