Apprenticeship Q&A with Gemma Pritchard

What did you do your apprenticeship in?

I did my apprenticeship in Digital and Technology Solutions Specialist – Software Engineering Pathway (DTSS (SE)).

Why did you choose to do an apprenticeship?

I chose to do an apprenticeship as I felt it was the best way to skill up while getting industry experience. Also, over the years, I have discovered that I am better at learning by doing, so the layout of an apprenticeship suited my learning style.

What have you learnt from this apprenticeship?

I have learnt so much from this apprenticeship. One of the biggest things that has helped me grow my skills has been to immediately put into practice what I have learnt at university, and through learning and understanding our product as well as best practices learnt within the classroom, I have been able to identify key areas of success and potential future improvements. One of my favourite modules was all about cloud computing and understanding microservices, designing the architecture for a new product. I was able to solidify my learning by taking what I have learnt and discussing how we have designed our Cloud Evidence locker using microservices.

How has this apprenticeship helped you develop your skills?

Being surrounded by experts in the field is an amazing way to learn and develop. Within my course we had a whole module on managing people, projects and teams, this aided my understanding in the best practices for creating successful teams and understanding my leadership style.

Being within the workplace at least 4 days a week and actively working on products and projects, I have been able to apply all of my theoretical learning straight away and cement my learning. This has been amazing in gaining my confidence and developing my leadership style, helping me find my role within the company. 

What job do you have now?

I still hold the same title that I started with, Product Engineer, but the role has changed and developed with my skills. Since starting, I have thrown myself into various roles and tasks: testing, UX/UI, project management and more.

Being customer-facing is something I have found a love for, working closely with the UX/UI team to create valuable experiences for our end users. Since graduating I have taken on more projects, pushing myself out of my comfort zone, getting in front of customers more doing demos. 

In the future where do you hope to be?

Over these past two and a half years, I have learnt so much; one key thing is that I love learning. I find joy in understanding people and making their lives easier through what I do.

I do not have a set vision or end goal for where I want to be, but I know I want to work with people, understanding them and their requirements to hopefully make their lives easier.