This week celebrates National Apprenticeship Week. The theme this year is “Skills for life”, which reflects the idea of how apprenticeships can shape the entire career of individuals.
As a company, we support apprentices with their training and development. We also benefit from the fresh ideas that young professionals can bring to the table. Project Centre has a number of apprentices across the business, from our support departments to the engineering and urban designers teams.
We couldn’t think of a better way to recognise the importance of apprenticeships, by hearing from our very own Marketing Apprentice, Maria Lawal, who was willing to share her experience.
An apprentice’s diary
I started my apprenticeship one year ago, and have learnt a lot about the business and myself. I discovered new ways to stay organised, prioritise and meet deadlines. I’ve also received phenomenal support from my team, line manager, apprentice manager, and training provider at VQ Solutions.
Throughout the year I’ve connected with apprentices across the business, especially during “apprentices voice” meetings. Apprentices voice is an internal event that connects apprentices across Marston Holdings and provides a platform to share information.
I started around the same time as our IT apprentice, Maha Mobeen, and we quickly became friends. Maha is a friendly and outgoing colleague, who always goes above and beyond to support the business. To celebrate the Apprenticeship Week, I caught up with her and we spoke about our one year journey as apprentices.
A day in the life of an apprentice
When we first started, Maha worked on organising the laptop stock, ensuring new starters have laptops ready with necessary apps, and floor walking. Floor walking is when IT personnel checks that everyone’s devices are working well. Meanwhile, my work as a Marketing Apprentice included uploading to social media, setting up meetings, and writing posts for our website. In addition, I would assist with organising events.
We’ve gone a long way since we started. From needing daily support from our managers, we’re now both taking ownership of projects. I’ve been independently creating a welcome pack to welcome new starters, writing thought leadership articles on a range of topics and producing employee focus pieces. Maha has been implementing a major IT system update, to enhance security and modernise our infrastructure. I feel proud when I look back at the progress we’ve made over the months.
The benefits of our apprenticeships
We think apprenticeships slightly take off the weight of having to insert yourself in a totally different environment after university. You get a chance to see what the real professional world looks like, and have a little bit of time to get used to it.
Our days look pretty different but still have some similarities. We are lucky because we have constant support from two sides. These include regular catch-ups with our line managers and training courses with our apprenticeship provider. The best thing about going through an apprenticeship for us was being able to both learn, and get hands-on experience in our industries. We have slightly reduced working hours, as one day a week is reserved for our studies, but besides that, we really get to learn and be involved in everything. Maha has also recently become our employee of the month, which shows how hard she works and how people across the business recognise her worth.
Our professional support system
As apprentices, we receive a range of support, such as our line manager, training provider, and apprenticeship manager. Our training provider is there to help us through the apprenticeship, answer any questions we have and make sure work is going well.
As well as Maha, I’ve also caught up with our Graduate Engineer, Sandra Ampong, who is currently mentoring our new Highways Apprentice Jon-Claude. Sandra is responsible for making his journey smoother and helping him understand ways to flourish in the engineering industry. She’s also helping him with his Institution of Civil Engineers professional qualification for Engineering Technician.
“It’s great being able to mentor an apprentice. It’s not only that I’m helping him move forward, but I’m also learning from him.”
Sandra Ampong, Graduate Engineer and Apprenticeship Mentor
Sandra is a young talented engineer. I wanted to know how her experience in entering the professional world and what advice she is giving to Jon to make his career journey easier. “I’m trying to be there for Jon as much as I can, keeping him motivated and answering any questions he might have. I think the key to performing well in a company is to ask lots of questions and be proactive. Even if you think you’re asking or doing something silly, just ask the question first. Networking is also key. Get your name out there and get involved with as many people and teams as you can. I think apprenticeships are a great way to do this. You’ll get the opportunity to learn right in the field, and also have social activities to get to know more people and expand your knowledge to different disciplines and teams.”
Our plans for the future…
Maha and I will be completing our apprenticeships around March of this year. I asked her what she plans to do after finishing, and she said: “Usually, an apprentice will become a full time employee once they’ve finished studying. But I really want to continue learning and working at Project Centre. I’m thinking of starting a higher level apprenticeship with Project Centre.”
I agree with Maha’s goal of continuing her studies as my training provider advised that it’s better to continue to the next level while all the information is fresh in our heads. Otherwise, we’d leave it for too long. For this reason, I plan to continue progressing in my career and develop my knowledge base. I feel like there is so much to learn at Project Centre and not just in terms of Marketing, but personal development as well. I’ve become more confident and have an amazing team who provides great support.
Apprenticeships are a rewarding experience that provide insight into professional life while allowing us to study and gain a qualification. We gradually build responsibilities and professional networks, and make friends with similar interests. Catching up with Maha and Sandra has been great and allowed me to connect with colleagues. My apprenticeship provided me with a gradual transition into full time working in marketing, which I’m incredibly grateful for.
Drop us an email at recruitment@projectcentre.co.uk if you’re interested in learning more about our apprenticeship opportunities.
