Engineering apprentice Amelia shares her story and gives advice to those considering the career path. Watch the interview to find out about Amelia’s apprenticeship journey.
Pete Thorpe, Head of Education and Youth Voice at Youth Employment UK, interviews engineering apprentice Amelia. Amelia is one of our volunteer Youth Ambassadors – and also an award winning mechanical and electrical engineering apprentice with Youth-Friendly Employer Coca-Cola Europacific Partners.
Amelia was awarded Apprentice of the Year at the FMEA Awards 2021 and she was also the 2021 winner of the Youth Ambassador Special Recognition Award at Youth Employment UK’s Youth Friendly Employer Awards 2021.
See how to become a youth ambassadorwatch the interview below:
What was your path to your apprenticeship? How did you get there?
I had done my GCSEs at my secondary school and they weren’t offering the level of engineering that I wanted to continue to pursue. I was put in contact with many different people and companies, and I was very lucky that I got to meet and go round a lot of different local engineering firms. One day, I was doing a presentation about work experience at a school business breakfast where lots of different companies and their representatives came in, and at the end my (now) boss expressed an interest in me, gave me their card and I got a tour around the Coca-Cola factory. It still doesn’t feel real.
From getting that card to being at the doors of Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, what application process did you go through to get there?
The application process had closed two weeks before I was approached and I didn’t even know Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) offered an engineering apprenticeship. I was given a link to apply and I was asked to attend an interview day. I didn’t hear anything for a while, but one day I got an email confirming I had been offered an apprenticeship and I was so pleased. There was a lot of pressure because I hadn’t gone through the normal application route, but I wouldn’t change it for the world.
What does your typical week look like?
I usually tend to start each day by looking at my phone to find out what happened the night before so I know what I’m walking into. CCEP runs a 24/7 operation – so much can happen from when you finish your working day to starting a new one. No two days are the same for me so I can’t really describe a typical week.
One day I could be 140 feet in the air hanging from a crane in our warehouse and an hour later I could be underneath a machine doing routine maintenance. It’s so varied but that’s why I love my job. I’m never bored.
What have been the biggest challenges and what are the skills you really lean on?
You have got to be disciplined. I have to manage a full time role (5 day work) in 4 days, because I have 1 day at college. I then have to manage 2 qualifications at once. I also have to manage things like this – I am very passionate about spreading the message of apprenticeships and I’m a Youth Ambassador at Youth Employment UK. I personally like to have the weekends off with my family so I make sure I do my work in the week.
You also have to communicate too and admit when you need help. That’s a great skill to have. Also, what you communicate can be in terms of asking for more time or doing different tasks. You’ve just got to ask and in the right way.
Have you managed to keep those weekends free all the time?
There’s some weeks where I have loads of assignments and others where I have maybe one or two. I’m quite lucky in that I do manage to balance my time, and I have cancelled plans before because I have so much to do. My family and friends are very accepting of the fact that I am very busy. You can’t always protect your weekends but you can do your best.
What are the biggest lessons you’ll take from your experience into your career?
I am definitely going to take my time-keeping with me and a lot of my soft skills lessons like communication and discipline (which is a big part of self-management). My practical skills – what I’ve actually learnt in my job – are what I’m going to take forward as that is the role I’m going to do.
I’ve learnt so much throughout my apprenticeship and it gets to the point where you can’t always remember what you’ve done. I’ve been so lucky to have incredible experiences like this, and like winning awards with Youth Employment UK.
It’s been a hard four years, but it’s been a rewarding four years and I’m at the end of the tunnel now. I know that I’m going to come out of this as a well-rounded person.
What advice would you give to someone who is at the start of their apprenticeship journey?
If you’re thinking about it, do it! It will be the best thing you will ever do. You’ll learn so much and you’ll gain so much more experience and skills that you can’t get in a classroom. The skills you get at work are invaluable and you get to earn while you learn.
In the short term you’ve got a lot of sacrifices to make but it’s so worth it in the end. Take in every single moment, write everything down, absorb all the information you can and ask as many questions as you can get out. Enjoy this experience because I would say it’s been the best four years of my life.
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