“I researched engineering courses heavily while I was still at high school; I was always interested in engineering and then looked at local opportunities near where I live. I applied to study an apprenticeship at the College of West Anglia as it is local for me and offered the apprenticeship I needed to do the job I wanted to do.
As an electrical maintenance engineer, I primarily learn electrical theorem, attend unplanned breakdowns and carry out essential maintenance on our paper mill in King’s Lynn. The machine has many intricate/specialist parts and it's important we keep these parts in good running condition to make the best paper we possibly can.
In my first year, I attended College on Wednesdays and for my final two years, I attended on Tuesdays.
The benefits of studying an apprenticeship are earning while gaining hands-on practical experience. The knowledge is practical and applied and you can get a good overall understanding of both practical and theory.
I chose to study an apprenticeship rather than a full-time college course as I wanted the hands-on experience to allow me to do my job better/more effectively and be more of an asset to the team. I feel that if I’d done a full-time course, I would need to learn a lot of practical work to carry tasks out to the same standard.
A typical day at work involves working with likeminded engineers, maintaining PM7, servicing equipment as well as working on the paper machine’s intricate network of interconnected instrumentation/process equipment. I work strategically/efficiently to fault find on the plant and plan the next steps going forward.
I enjoy the social aspect of college, as well as the practical skills I learnt from tutors in the
workshop, such as welding, mechanics and electrical panelling.
The best thing about completing an apprenticeship is structured learning while also having a mentor to support you throughout, as well as active employer involvement to turn you into a well-crafted engineer in the long-term.
To someone who was thinking about coming to college to study an apprenticeship, I would say “Do it, the experience you gain from it is great and can be applied both in and out of work, you’re able to help people more and get a great sense of self-achievement.”
When I finish my apprenticeship, I plan to stay at Palm Paper and become a fully qualified Palm maintenance engineer. I would also look to undertake my HNC/HND in the future.”