Employee

Before completing my GCSEs I was given the opportunity to study engineering. It wasn’t something I had really looked at before but I was interested to try something new. As the course progressed I realised this was an area I could really see myself taking an interest in and being a part of.

I went on to complete my A-levels in maths, physics and product design and decided instead of continuing on to university I wanted to go for an apprenticeship. I always thought an apprenticeship would be the best route into engineering as one of the main aspects of the profession is having good practical knowledge. I felt this wasn’t something university could necessarily offer me.

I heard JDR was looking to recruit some engineering apprentices so I did some research into the company. I didn’t have any prior knowledge of subsea umbilicals and cables but I thought it could be an interesting opportunity to learn something totally new within a growing industry, so I applied for a position. After a series of tests and interviews I was successful in gaining a place as one of JDRs first apprentices.

We spent our first year in full time college spending time in the factory over half-terms to help us get a feel for the factory environment before we started work full time. I then went on to gain distinctions in all of my subject areas and I was awarded the Engineering Apprentice of the year, the overall Apprentice of the year. I was also awarded the Engineering student of the year by our local College of Further Education. I am now working full time at JDR where I am continuing to build on my practical and theoretical skills and knowledge.