Five ways to get the most out of your apprenticeship

Apprenticeships are amazing. Not only do they give you a great head start in your career, they give you the chance to earn a decent wage while you learn and also gain a qualification at the end of it. If you’re starting out in your career, an apprenticeship could be the best option to kickstart your career - I’m talking from first-hand experience. 

My own career at 16, when I began a business and administration apprenticeship at a local authority. From there, I have built a career in marketing, and now work as a digital marketing coach at WhiteHat, teaching marketing skills and supporting apprentices through their apprenticeships. 

My apprenticeship taught me some valuable lessons, it introduced me into the world of business and the sudden change from being a pupil to being an employee, forced me to grow up quicker. Reflecting back14 years later, I can say that my time as an apprentice is up there with some of the best parts of my career - I wish I knew that at the time! 

As an apprentice, you’re under a lot of pressure. Not only do you have a day job to maintain, a qualification to gain but particularly towards the end of your apprenticeship, you have the added stress of securing a job for after your apprenticeship. My advice to you, start preparing for after your apprenticeship, right from the start.

Here are my tips on how to do that; I originally wrote this a couple of years after I finished my apprenticeship and have since brought it up to date!

1. Spot and seize opportunities 

Take up any opportunities to develop your skills, gain experience or meet new people from across the business. There are tons of opportunities available out there, you just have to learn how to spot them and seize them. If your company has a mentoring scheme, sign up to it. Same with any coffee meet up groups where you are matched with someone at random. Always ask questions! Whether this relates to something you are unsure about or a request about an opportunity you are interested in. Don’t be afraid to ask – you owe it to your future!

2. Network, network, network! 

Read any business book, and they will talk about the importance of networking. You’ve heard the saying ‘It’s not always what you know, it's who you know’ - this is fact! It's people who make things happen, be it new jobs, promotions, pay rises…

By networking and expanding your circle, you’re exposed to more opportunities, potential employers, clients, partnerships, mentors and more. Networking is about creating and nurturing mutually beneficial relationships so make sure you’re not just thinking about what the other person can do for you. Again, join any mentoring/coffee catch up opportunities that are presented to you, volunteer for projects which will expose you to more people across the business. Get yourself and your name out there!

3. Take advantage of training opportunities

Most large companies and organisations have training budgets available for staff to undertake training. Courses like Prince2 to the AAT accountancy qualification, Adobe Photoshop/Illustrator, can be extremely valuable to your career. Not only do these increase your skills, they also look great on your CV and increase your attractiveness to employers and as a freelancer. If there are any training courses that can help you in your role and will help you beyond your role, ask if you can attend it - write a short business case on how it will help the team and develop yourself to increase your chances of it being approved. 

4. Get job-ready from early

 If you’re coming up to the end of your apprenticeship – I’m talking six months or so away, start making your preparations for your new role after your apprenticeship, from now.

Often, apprenticeship roles are basic levels roles within an organisation and once you have completed your apprenticeship, you will have the skills and experience needed to successfully apply for the next role up. Look at job adverts within your company and external jobs and pick out a few that you are interested in. Review the job description for those roles and spend the next six months gaining the experience and skills you need to secure it. Speak to other teams within your company and see what roles they have coming up. You may wish to go into a different field to which your apprenticeship was in - why not see if you can spend a week doing work experience in the team?

5. Don’t lose what makes you, YOU!

Stay enthusiastic and excited about learning! Your enthusiasm and passion will shine and will attract new opportunities. Apprentices are welcomed and appreciated because of the ‘out of the box’ thinking they can bring. Challenge old ways of working, suggest new ideas, ask lots of questions. It can be tough working in a new environment where you may feel like a fish out of water and sometimes like your ideas aren’t good enough. This is a normal feeling to have as an apprentice, just remember you are only at the start of your career and your confidence will grow! 

I hope this article helps even just one apprentice. There are many ex-apprentices out there who have gone on to greatness, such as starting their own business or becoming a directors/CEOS or, have successfully found their passion - you can’t put a price or a title on that! There’s no reason why you can’t too as long as you stay focused, ambitious and hungry for success!