Apprenticeships – the key to professional and personal growth

In the UK, statistics show a 0.7% increase in those starting apprenticeships in the 2023/24 academic year compared to the year before, and more significantly an increase of 8.2% for higher apprenticeships. With apprenticeships increasing in popularity, Senior Early Careers Talent Advisor, Annabel Snowden, explores the value of this pathway and shares her inside take on the esteemed apprenticeship experience at SYSTRA. 

Why are so many people now choosing to undertake apprenticeships?

It’s no secret that apprenticeships provide an opportunity to gain on-the-job practical experience and job-specific skills alongside industry qualifications. But, there’s a lot more to the pathway, and many reasons why they’re such an excellent way of learning and beginning a career.

Within my role I’ve witnessed first-hand the impact apprenticeships can have on the confidence and adaptability of early careers professionals. I’ve watched many of the apprentices at SYSTRA build and excel in the development of soft skills like communication, teamwork and leadership. Within the engineering and consultancy industry in particular, effective collaboration and problem-solving is fundamental, so the fast growth of these interpersonal skills is really important.

Many university courses offer and encourage work placement initiatives. There’s nothing quite like getting stuck into the realities of an industry, making a real-world impact, and finding your feet amongst other professionals at a variety of career stages. Apprenticeships take this a step further. Apprentices can build an invaluable network of professional contacts and mentors before they’ve completed their studies. Colleagues can support them, be honest about workplace expectations and standards, and share years of industry experience and lessons learned. In-turn, experienced professionals often value working alongside apprentices who bring fresh, new, innovative ideas to the table. This knowledge sharing and ingenuity is crucial within our industry. 

It can be a struggle to transition between full-time study and full-time work life. Sometimes the realities of an industry can be unexpected, the style of working environment may not be a good fit, in fact a dream career could even come into question. Apprentices avoid this confusion, often taking the opportunity to rotate disciplines within an industry and chat to colleagues about what really suits them, all before they’re fully left the structure of education.

And, apprenticeships aren’t just for those kickstarting their working lives. They’re also an excellent option for career changers looking to explore a new field without the financial worries which may come from full-time study.

Apprenticeships at SYSTRA

We understand recruiting and retaining the most talented people is a vital part of delivering on our reputation for excellence and innovation across our markets and services. As such, every year we strive to take on apprentices across the majority of our key disciplines.

In engineering, our apprentices get to work on conventional or high-speed rail projects; light rail, underground or metro projects; bridges and highways infrastructure; energy; security; or built environment developments. And in consultancy, there’s plenty of opportunities in urban and railway transportation, civil infrastructure, buildings, and urban and regional planning projects for public or private-sector clients.

This variety is fundamental and inherent to our apprenticeship programmes, but it’s really the apprentice experience that matters to us the most. We want our apprentices to be with us in the long-term, so our apprenticeship offering reflects this value. My team works hard to ensure the business offers meaningful career pathways, with real development, growth and high-profile project opportunities, based on performance and skills. We’re all about inspiring the next generation of professionals, budding innovators and thought leaders.

You can hear directly from our apprentices on their career journeys and time at SYSTRA in our early careers profiles.

We offer two apprenticeship paths, both of which allow for 20% learning time and 80% on-the-job experience: 

• Level 3 Digital Engineering Apprenticeship – a 3-year programme that provides a broad introduction to digital engineering in the first year, after which our apprentices select a technical pathway. 
• Level 4 Apprenticeship / Degree Apprenticeship – a 5-year programme in various disciplines, resulting in a degree qualification. 

Find out more about our apprenticeships and view our current opportunities here.

There’s a pathway for everyone at SYSTRA

At SYSTRA we welcome a diverse range of talent, from all academic backgrounds – that’s exactly what makes our business so forward-thinking, pioneering and successful. Our apprentices are one of the crucial pieces that helps form who we are. 

We know we have just as much to learn from the fresh perspectives of our apprentices and other early careers colleagues, as they do from our more experienced industry professionals. 

Together, we will continue to learn, grow, innovate and thrive. 

Find out all there is to know on apprenticeships at SYSTRA. 

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