South Western Railway will be continuing its commitment to the apprenticeship programme this year with 9 new opportunities live this week, including a position at Ryde St John’s.
Candidates are encouraged to apply quickly as the openings, which always prove incredibly popular, will be closing to applications at midnight on Sunday 22nd November.
In addition to the apprenticeship roles, SWR also currently has a significant number of live ongoing job vacancies across its network, many of which do not require previous rail industry experience.
The 4-year SWR apprenticeship scheme is geared towards developing highly-skilled Train Technicians and has an impressive retention rate of 98%. Each apprentice divides their time between training college and gaining valuable workplace experience, giving them the opportunity to learn while they earn. Successful applicants can expect to receive a salary of £20,577 in the first year, increasing to £25,306 by Year 4 (plus regional allowance).
Nicole Perkins is in her second year of an Operational Management and Engineering Apprenticeship and is based at Bournemouth depot. She says:
“I honestly believe there is no better route into a career in engineering than an apprenticeship – I can assure you, they’re not just for 16-year olds.
“I get to learn things on the job that I could never be taught in the classroom, while earning a good salary, but I will still come out of this with a university degree – something I never thought was for me. I wish I’d known about this option sooner and can only encourage anyone hoping to pursue this as a career path to just go ahead and apply.”
Apprenticeship candidates need at least four GCSE grades A to C including Maths, English and Science or any other relevant further education.
To apply for an apprenticeship or view other available career opportunities at South Western Railway, visit https://uk.firstgroupcareers.com/company/southwesternrailway/home/.
Good grief.
Just another word for cheap and disposable labour
£20k starting wage doesn’t sound like cheap labour to me Mr Bing Bong
People knocking a good career on the railway because it’s a apprenticeship!!
What is wrong with people???