University of Oxford Apprentices: #GetInGoFar

Oxfordshire Apprenticeship Awards Nominations

This year will see the first ever Oxfordshire Apprenticeship Awards, and Oxford University is celebrating several nominations for our Apprentices.

Congratulations to all of the following:

Intermediate Apprentice of the Year:

Adam Fisk, Apprentice at the Natural History Museum

Advanced Apprentice of the Year:

Kyle Hallett, Oncology Apprentice

Apprenticeship Ambassador of the Year:

Sophie Jamieson, Lab Technician Apprentice

Emily Joyce, Undergraduate Admissions and Outreach Apprentice

Grace Parsons, IT Services Apprentice

The winners will be announced at an event on the 8th March during National Apprenticeship Week 2017.

Congratulations again to all those nominated!

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Oxford University at Careers Fest 2017

#Apprenticeship

Careers Fest 2017 was a great success, with around 1800 students from 20 schools from across Oxfordshire coming to learn more about how to make the most of their futures with Apprenticeships.

The event took place on the 1st and 2nd Februrary in the MINI Plant in Cowley. Apprentices from throughout the University were on hand to answer any questions students might have and to inspire the next generation to think about how an Apprenticeship might work for them.

Watch this video to get a taste of what went on over the two days at Careers Fest. University of Oxford Apprentice Leanne appears at 3:05, talking about why she chose to do an apprenticeship and her experiences.

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Congratulations!

#Apprenticeship

Congratulations to James Ritchie, Herbarium Apprentice, for completing his Level 3 Apprenticeship qualification!

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Estates Services at the Apprenticeship Awards

#Apprenticeship

Estates Services have written a post on their website about the Oxford University Apprenticeship Awards that took place in December.

One of their team, Colin White (Patrol Team Supervisor in Security Services), won the Apprentice Supervisor Award for his exceptional support and management of his team of apprentices. Congratulations to Colin!

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Inspiring Apprentices - Jordan

#Apprenticeship

Jordan had always been interested in design and print and after GCSE’s had taken a Level 3 Extended Diploma in Graphic Design. Jordan enjoyed the printing side and spotted the Apprenticeship with the Reprographics Team and knew it was what she wanted to do.

Jordan’s role in Reprographics involves producing all sorts of printed material such as postcards, wedding invitations, folded leaflets and has learnt the art of bookbinding.

In a recent interview with Oxfordshire Apprenticeships Jordan said:

“It’s so nice to be given the opportunity to show how well an Apprenticeship can bring someone on and develop their skills. I have already learned so much. Every day is different and all the machines do different things, I’ve loved finding out all about what they can do.”

The team in Reprograhics have been supportive and encouraging while she gets to grips with her role.

“They don’t look down on me if I make a mistake, they say it’s a good way to learn! I’ve never been a confident person, but my confidence has gone up by miles. It’s nice to feel part of something, like there’s a purpose to what I’m doing.”

Jordan’s also had some words of advice for other young people considering whether or not an Apprenticeship is for them:

“Don’t think you have to go to uni to get somewhere. If you have a skill that you want to develop…an apprenticeship gives you a good entrance to the working world. If you’re confused about what to do – try something new, don’t rush and feel you have to make a decision about what you want to do for the rest of your life.”

With thanks to Oxfordshire Apprenticeships for this article.

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University Apprenticeship Awards 2016

#Apprenticeship

Friday 9th December saw our annual University Apprenticeship Awards being held at the iconic Sheldonian Theatre for the first time.

Many attended our annual Awards Ceremony this year and due to our increase in new apprentices our award numbers grew too.

With thanks to Abingdon and Witney College, ATG Training, Activate Learning and Oxfordshire Apprenticeships our award winners were presented with £100 vouchers to spend in high street stores.

1 x New Apprentice Award - Grace Parsons

2 x Intermediate Apprenticeship Award - Adam Fisk and Lee Singleton

2 x Advanced Apprenticeship Award - Kyle Hallett and James King

We also congratulated Colin White for winning this years Mentor Award, Danielle Hoare for winning our 2016 Poster Competition and presented our graduates with their personal certificates.

Each year the Apprenticeships Manager chooses an individual that has made outstanding contribution to our Apprenticeships Scheme however this year it was dedicated to a team of people that have worked extremely hard to recruit a cohort of 8 new apprentices. Not only have they managed to successfully hire and train 8 new apprentices, they even took time to be trained themselves in order to provide their new recruits with such a great training course. Our Estates FM team have really helped our Apprenticeships scheme to progress even further and for that we thank them.

Over 130 staff, family and friends attended this years Ceremony to celebrate Apprenticeships. We hope to see numbers growing with each passing year and wish all of our apprentices, old or new, every luck for the future!

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Apprenticeship Ambassadors Training Day

#Apprenticeships

Last Tuesday saw six Apprentices complete their training to become Apprenticeship Ambassadors for Oxfordshire Apprenticeships.

Ambassadors are representatives for Apprenticeship schemes. They come from all over Oxfordshire and work for a wide range of companies and institutions to promote Apprenticeships as a great way to start a career, using their own stories and their first-hand experience to inspire young people across Oxfordshire.

During the training the Apprentices learn how to tell their own Apprenticeship story. They can then go to schools and careers events and speak to students considering Apprenticeships, parents, and companies considering taking on Apprentices.

Congratulations to the new Ambassadors, including University of Oxford Apprentices Grace Parsons (IT Services) and Frances Murray (Bodleian Library)!

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7 Reasons to Take an Apprenticeship

#Apprenticeships

Not Going to Uni, an online apprenticeship directory, have published an article on seven reasons to choose an apprenticeship over going to university.

Our favourite reasons include:

Get Your Career Started

As an apprentice your career is underway as soon as you get started. There is no need to wonder what you will be doing when you qualify as you are already doing it! Many apprentices even stay working with the company they apprentice for – making the transition into work really easy.

Training & Support

Unlike heading straight into a job, an apprenticeship will offer you structured support while you train. With people who are genuinely doing the job you are training for alongside you, you can pick up tips and advice as you go. Those not quite ready for an apprenticeship can still get things moving with a traineeship, which will offer a good foundation from which to move forward.

And, very importantly:

No Debt

While we have already mentioned earning a wage while on your apprenticeship there is a much larger financial benefit to doing an apprenticeship compared to going to university. With no tuition fees there is no debt. You will be able to start your career without the burden of owing thousands of pounds – never mind how such debts could impact your credit rating and future financial well-being!

Read the rest of the reasons here, and find out why an apprenticeship might be the right choice for you!

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Apprenticeship Ambassadors at Woodstock

#Apprenticeships

On the 14th April Apprenticeship Ambassadors Sophie Bebb and Adam Fisk attended an Apprenticeship Event at The Marlborough Church of England School in Woodstock to help raise awareness of Apprenticeships as a viable option to students planning the next steps of their education.

Sophie and Adam told their stories at the event, talking about how they applied for their Apprenticeships, what their roles involve and where their careers are headed once they've completed their Apprenticeships.

The event featured almost 50 exhibitors and talks from Clive Shephard, Apprenticeships Manager at the University of Oxford, and Melanie Ringer from Oxfordshire Apprenticeships. It was open to students from Year 10 and upwards as well as members of the public and employers looking to find out more about the wide range of benefits Apprenticeship schemes have to offer.

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National Apprenticeship Week 2016 Round Up

#Apprenticeships

With National Apprenticeship Week coming to a close, it's high time we shared all of the exciting events that have been going on for the University of Oxford Apprentices!

Monday

It's definitely safe to say that we kicked off National Apprenticeship Week in the best way possible.... With cake!!

Apprentices form across Oxfordshire, including Sophie Bebb and Sophie Jamieson from The University of Oxford, came along to Oxford County Hall and took part in The Great Apprentice Bake Off! This event was aimed at raising money and awareness for the Yellow Submarine charity, who do fantastic work with young people with learning disabilities to help build up their confidence, social skills, independence and get them ready for the world of work.

Great British Bake Off winner, Nadiya Hussain, even got involved, favouriting tweets of some of the competitors cakes.

In total £192.84 was raised for the charity and National Apprentice Week got off to a flying start.

Tuesday

Another busy day, but this time over in the Richard Doll Building in Heddington.

Around 80 people from across the University of Oxford and external guests came together to hear Vice-Chancellor, Professor Louise Richardson’s resounding endorsement of University Apprenticeships. The Vice-Chancellor opened by commenting that she wished there was an Apprenticeship for her new role, which she has held since the 1st of January! The Vice-Chancellor praised the University for its commitment to broad education and paying our Apprentices a living wage. The Vice-Chancellor also re-asserted our promise to increase the number of Apprentices from 60 to 150 by April 2017.

Hosted by Professor Irene Tracey, Associate Head of the Medical Sciences Division (Personnel) in the Richard Doll lecture theatre, Gary Strickland (Business Manager at the Nuffield Department of Medicine) announced NDM’s commitment to five more apprenticeships in the near future. Apprentice Laboratory Technician Sophie Jamieson played a starring role by sharing her experience as an Apprentice over the last three years, highlighting the life-changing difference it’s made to her and why we should continue to support the recruitment of Apprentices across the University. Dr Stephen Goss (Pro Vice-Chancellor for Personnel and Equality) finished by drawing our attention to the skill areas of Apprenticeships and some of the ways that we have made it easier for managers to recruit and train Apprentices, rounding off a successful affirmation of University of Oxford Apprenticeships.

Sophie J telling her apprenticeship story

Wednesday

Apprentice Laboratory Technician Sophie Jamieson appeared live on That's Oxfordshire TV on Wednesday evening. Accompanied by Aoife from Oxfordshire Apprenticeships they answer the questions that everyone is eager to know about apprenticeships around Oxfordshire and inside the university.

Thursday

North Oxford Academy in Banbury hosted an evening Apprenticeships Fair for students and their parents. Sophie Bebb and Clive Shepherd went along with a small army of 'Oxford Apprentice Bugs' to talk all about the many opportunities available to apprentices within the university.

Our stand was incredibly popular, with students queueing up wanting to know more about how to apply for apprenticeships in marketing, security, engineering, finance, HR and so many more! As always, the best place to head over to is our main website - http://www.apprenticeships.ox.ac.uk/ with pages of information on why to apply, who to contact and most importantly.... the vacancies page.

Oxford University Apprenticeship Bugs out in Force!

Friday

To finish up National Apprenticeship week a number of apprentices represented The University of Oxford in the Business in the Community’s event at the Kassam Stadium.
This was aimed at year groups 11 and 12 from local schools with around 150 pupils interacting in a speed networking event with local employers and apprentices.

Olivia Acott, Apprentice from the Department of Computer Science

Other highlights included.....

Adam Fisk from the Natural History Museum and new Oxfordshire Apprenticeship Ambassador featured on the @ApprenticesRox twitter page. His 'Day in the Life' pictures took over the feed showing just what he gets up to behind the scenes at the museum. (Spoiler- yes he does get to help build the dinosaurs!)

In the Press

Apprentices new and old have been featured in the local news papers, The Oxford Times and The Oxford Mail.With pieces written by the apprentices themselves and a wonderful article by Anna Malkin, Personnel Officer in Senior Appointments and part of the Oxford University Apprenticeships Team.

Apprentices include:
James Ritchie - Department of Plant Sciences
Gideon Ring - Department of Materials
Sophie Jamieson - The Nuffield department of Medicine
Aston Tyrell - Engineering Science Department
Daniel Pull - IT Services
Sophie Bebb - Said Business School
Jacob Maish - Oxford University Press
Laura Wilkins - IT Services
Ellie Turner - Said Business School
Emily Joyce - Department of Physics
Sophie Rhymes - Said Business School
Alison Franklin - Green Templeton College
Ella Gordon-James - Said Business School

If any of these events appeal to you or you would like to know how to find out more about apprenticeships, head over to our website at www.apprenticeships.ox.ac.uk

With thanks to Stuart Bebb Photography - http://www.stuartbebb.com/
and the ApprenticesRox Facebook page for use of these fantastic images.

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