AWE have been running one of the country’s most successful apprenticeship schemes fornearly 65 years and have identified that 11% of our current workforce are former apprentices, many of whom have enjoyed long and rewarding careers with our organisation.
Apprenticeships allow us to grow our talent pool by developing a motivated, skilled and qualified workforce and many of our former apprentices have worked their way through the company to senior leadership positions, including our Chief Engineer.
Kerry, Head of Profession for Electronics Engineering and Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, joined AWE’s Apprenticeship programme in 1985,
“I have really enjoyed my career with AWE and can’t think of another organisation where I would have had the variety of opportunities that I have had here. I have always been supported to achieve whilst maintaining a good work-life balance, which has enabled me to have a diverse progressive career in Warhead Engineering and raise a family. I now hold a senior leadership role in the company, managing both people and programmes to ensure AWE sustains an engineering capability. I have a privileged opportunity to inspire the next generation of engineers and help them realise their potential as I continue to do. Joining AWE all those years ago is still one of the best decisions I ever made.”
Amy - Current Electronics apprentice
"The idea of an apprenticeship intrigued me, gaining both practical and theoretical knowledge of a given trade. I knew that an apprenticeship would lead into a rewarding a fulfilling career and AWE just had the one for me. I wanted a challenging career where I would develop and gain new skill sets. This apprenticeship had allowed me to explore my Electronic Engineering Career and it has allowed me to go above and beyond helping promote AWE and the apprenticeship disciplines we have. It has given me confidence to talk to people in and around the business for support and guidance and has also allowed me to understand how the business works and how my apprenticeship will contribute to it. The current scheme has given me a better sight into how diverse engineering is and how all the AWE disciplines interlink with each other. I have been fortunate enough to be nominated for various rewards due to the hard work I have put in over the years."
Will-Former apprentice
"I joined AWE in August 2012 as an electronics apprentice. Growing up I was always fascinated with how objects work. I enjoyed being hands-on and finding solutions to problems. An apprenticeship suited me as I was able to learn a new skills and develop my knowledge in a practical environment.
The apprenticeship scheme at AWE is highly valued within the engineering industry and has won many awards as an apprenticeship provider. This along with good career prospects gave me the confidence that AWE was the place I wanted to start my career.
The apprenticeship journey helped me to develop into a confident young person. I have been able to improve my skills through networking and being given responsibility. In August 2016 I completed my apprenticeship and out turned as an electronics technician. Since completing my apprenticeship I have been able to start my HNC in electronic engineering which is the next step in the career path to further develop my skills and knowledge. I have made some fantastic friends and business connections throughout my journey as an apprentice".
Samantha, when in her fourth year as a Mechanical Apprentice was invited to attend a reception hosted by Nick Clegg, Deputy Prime Minister, during National Apprenticeship Week 2014 in appreciation of the fantastic contribution apprentices are making to our society and has more recently been recognised at the 2014 WISE Awards. Samantha said
“I decided to apply for the AWE apprenticeship scheme because I wanted something that was hands-on. I wanted a job with a great career path and knew people that worked at AWE and said it was great. It ticked all the boxes for me. I have had many fantastic opportunities as well as lots of training. Nearly four years on, I couldn’t be happier”.
Nick- Team Leader Production Engineering
"As Technical Drawing was my favourite subject at school, my aspiration was to work in design. I was advised I would need practical experience in the form of an apprenticeship. The apprenticeship scheme at AWE sounded like a great option for me. I spent the first three months of my apprenticeship filing the component parts of an engineer's square, this honed hand/eye coordination skills. I then progressed to machining a kit of tools on various machine tools.
After being designated as an Instrument Maker I spent the next two years working closely with apprentice masters in various instrument manufacturing workshops around the site learning more advanced processes. I was also receiving academic training at Technical College.
I'm very proud to say that I was an AWE apprentice and believe it was a great start to a career which saw me become a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of the Institute of Engineering and Technology, a Production Design Team Leader, and a Professional Mentor for up and coming engineers."
We look forward to continuing to inspire the great minds of the future with 45 new apprentices who will join us later this year.
