Hi my name is Rhys and I am currently doing a Business Administration Level 3 Apprenticeship alongside my role as a Project Assistant.

Why did you choose Croydon College?

I chose Croydon College because I had a good experience working here previously.

What has your experience been at the college?

I have had a good experience at the college as I have learnt many skills I could take into future workplace. I have been given a lot of support and guidance by my tutor throughout my course not only whilst studying but also whilst working.

What is your employment experience?

A rollercoaster of a time and a bit of a character-building experience! During my employment I have had to be very flexible within my own job role.

What are your future plans?

To find a job which suits my skills and something I would really enjoy as this apprenticeship has given me a clear direction in what I want to be doing after my apprenticeship. All my previous job roles have been helping vulnerable young people as I’m the type of person who would like to make a positive difference in a young person’s life (even though I still look very young 😊).

What advice would you give to future students considering an apprenticeship?

Have a positive mindset and mentality towards it.

Why did you choose Croydon College?

In 2010 I studied a BTEC Extended Diploma in Business at Croydon College and I was then offered the option of going on to university or studying an apprenticeship through Croydon College. As I did not want to go to university, I decided to do the apprenticeship.

What has your experience been at the college?

The experience during my apprenticeship was enjoyable as all the tutors and colleagues I worked with supported me. If I had any questions or did not understand at first then I would always receive the help I needed.

Why did I choose an apprenticeship?

I chose an apprenticeship as I liked the idea of being able to expand my knowledge in the business and finance area while earning money as the same time. The learning and working balance worked really well for me. An apprenticeship is a good way to ease yourself into work life from school or college.

What is your employment experience?

My employment experience has been very good. I have been working at Croydon College for almost 10 years. I started as an apprentice and was then taken on full time as a Finance Administrator. I was then promoted again internally to a Finance Assistant. After a few years I was then promoted to Finance Officer.

What are your future plans?

My next steps would be to move up to a supervisor or manager role.

What advice would you give to future students considering an apprenticeship?

The advice I would give to any future student considering an apprenticeship would be that they should definitely do it. It will give them experience in the workplace to see what is expected from them by employers. They can also decide if that career path is the right one as they get to experience it for themselves.

Why did I choose an apprenticeship?

I chose to do an apprenticeship because I realised this was the only way to learn and earn at the same time. I saw doing a college course alongside a temporary job in another field wasn’t something I wanted to do and I felt like by doing this type of learning I could benefit hugely from an employer who would eventually take me on full time, which would also save time looking and applying for jobs once my course is complete.

My Employment Experience

I can always say an employer that has accepted me as an apprentice wouldn’t be disappointed as I am keen to learn new skills that I can take me through life. With the support of family and close friends it has built me into someone an employer would want with qualities including drive, competence, and maturity. My first apprenticeship was good and deepened my foundation on which I stand on now. Even though I wasn’t offered a permanent job, I knew I had more to give.

My Future

I have plans to be successful in the profession I have chosen with the end goal to have many passive income streams and to build up my own company in building and branching out to other avenues once I find out where in the market I can capitalise. For me, I’ve come far already and this is just the beginning so I’m looking forward to the opportunities that will arise from my hard work over years past already.

Why did you choose Croydon College?

It’s a college local to myself which I had heard great things about. The course (Level 4 Construction and the Built Environment) sounded perfect and included everything I wanted to be learning about.

What has your experience been at Croydon College?

I have enjoyed the Wednesday classes with Jubin and found them incredibly useful. The college has been very helpful with any problems I have had and I feel like I can talk to everyone there.

Why did I choose an apprenticeship?

I chose an apprenticeship to get first-hand experience of the industry I am looking to go into as well as learn at the same time.

What is your employment experience?

The company I am working for has supported me the whole way through my apprenticeship. They give me help in areas I am struggling with and explain every part of it. I have loved working for them and have built a great relationship with the team.

What does the future hold for you?

After finishing my apprenticeship, the company I am working for have committed to taking me on full time and I will be moving onto a Level 5 apprenticeship, studying at a new university.

Why did you choose an apprenticeship?

Because while studying my A Levels I knew university wasn’t going to be for me – so I started looking at other options and apprenticeships came up, and I love the idea of earning while learning.

What’s the PPF experience like?

The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) experience has been amazing. The support I get from my managers and also my tutors has been great and any questions I have I know I can go to them. The PPF have been so welcoming to me and made sure I had enough time every week to complete my college work. I have learnt so much about what the PPF do and how we support our members, and I am able now to answer the calls we receive daily from our members. The college also supported me with weekly meetings to see how I was I was getting on and were also there for me to ask any questions.

What does the future hold for you at the Pension Protection Fund?

At the moment I don’t know, but one of the amazing things about the PPF is that you can move around to different parts of the organisation, whether that is through a secondment or a full time role.

I chose an apprenticeship as I thought it would be the best of both worlds,  getting on-the-job experience while still spending time in a classroom and learning in a class environment with students near my age.

My current employment experience, began my journey with a Portsmouth-based company called Brymor working on a four-storey teaching block for BHASVIC College in Brighton.

The project was a year and once complete I spent the next year of my two-year apprenticeship at McLaren Construction working on a £100million+ project with a maximum height of six storeys. I spent a lot of time learning from experienced site managers and applying what I’d learnt from college to work and vice versa.

Once I’d completed my apprenticeship I was met with a difficult decision as Brymor and McLaren had both offered me a full time role as a trainee site manager. However, a previous member of the team had moved to another company and offered me an opportunity to interview.

The company was called Midgard Limited and they were doing a £180million project with six blocks ranging from four-14 stories with cafes, shops and a wellness centre. I was offered the role of a trainee site manager where I work directly under a project manager who will also be looking after one of the blocks with me being second in command of the block.

In the future I look to progress to assistant site manager and then site manager. Down the line I’d look to progress to a project manager, or something similar.

Currently I’m studying at Croydon College for my HNC construction and built environment, where I hope to achieve distinction. Once complete I would be looking to complete an NVQ Level 6 to allow for me to get a black CSCS Card which would allow me to be a recognised Site Manager.

Contact our Apprenticeships team