Why did you choose to do an apprenticeship at Sky? (Why this particular programme and company?)

I chose to do an apprenticeship at Sky as I never really enjoyed education and going to university wasn’t really for me, so I wanted to earn money but also still get a decent qualification that would help me build up my CV and help me in my future career.

How did you find out about your apprenticeship?

I found out about the apprenticeship through looking on Indeed for apprenticeship jobs.

What does your role involve? What do you do on a day-to-day basis?

My role involves taking calls from customers all over the country and working hard to fix their technical faults with their broadband or their Sky TV.

What’s the culture like at Sky? How are you supported?

The culture at Sky is diverse and inclusive, we have a great mix of different people and different personalities. It is incredibly fun at Sky and never have a dull day in the office. The support in Sky is amazing the people here are always willing to help in any way they can. Sky has a lot of services to help with a variety of things we may need support with. For example, at the Sky Stockport we have a ZEN room where any advisors can go and just chill take a breather which will help with mental health. We also have things like mental health ambassadors and bereavement groups. Sky has a huge support network that is easily accessible anytime it is needed.

Adjusting to working life can be challenging, what challenges did you face and how did you overcome them?

Adjusting to the work life can be quite daunting to start off with and I found the transition quite hard myself. I found it quite hard to get used to working the full 40 hours and learning how to balance my work life balance. I overcame this barrier by making sure I had made plans for the weekend as then I have something to look forward to and get me through to week. I also made sure that when I went home at night, I was not just isolating myself I would take the dogs on a walk or meet my friends which will help keep the social aspect of my life alive.

Who is your learning training provider and what does the learning for your qualification consist of?

My learning training provider was City and Guilds. I did the Level 2 Customer Service Practitioner course. This consists of doing coursework over 15 months. During these 15 months I had to complete modules and create essays on the topic chose for the month. After the 15 months I got put forward for my end point assessment this consists of a day full of professional discussions and answering questions on the essays I created over the course of the 15 months.

What are the most important transferable skill you use in your role? (Please name at least three).

Communication, time management, conflict resolution

How can students begin developing this skill in their school subjects? Is it specific to certain subjects or can it be developed across the curriculum?

Time management

Time management can be developed in school by making sure you are on time for school, making sure you have revised in time for exams and making sure to hit deadlines on time for coursework. If you can do all this in school, you are on the right path to succeed in an apprenticeship.

Communication

Communication can be developed in school across the whole curriculum by making sure your teachers are in the loop with anything you may need more support on and asking for time with your teachers to talk about your grades and how to improve them.

Conflict resolution

This can be developed in subjects like history as a lot of debated happen in history and this is good as your peers may disagree with your side of the debate but it’s about how you handle this conflict, hearing about how historic conflicts have been resolves will also help students develop their conflict resolution skills.

What can young people do outside of school/college to develop this skill?

Time management can be developed outside of the school when planning things with friends and family and making sure you are on time to those plans. Or if you do any extracurricular activities make sure your stick to them do not give up and make sure you’re on time for them activates also.

Communication can be developed outside of work by making sure you are communicating with your friends and making plans outside of school automatically developed your communication skills as you must communicate with each other and make sure it is all organised correctly which takes a lot of communication to do it correctly. You can even develop this skill by going out for food or to the cinema as interacting with the staff their will help boost your communication skills as they will need to know what you want and need and pitching this to the staff is developing those communication skills.

What was the application process like?

I applied online, uploaded my cv and then answered a few questions and answered the scenarios in which I thought was best. If you pass this, you will then have an interview with someone from Sky which felt more like a chat than an interview. Once you have passed the application process you speak to your learning trainers.

How has this apprenticeship helped your career – career goals?

This apprenticeship has helped me in my career as I was incredibly nervous before starting this course, so my communication skills have developed majorly and so has my confidence. This has helped me get closer to my career goal, my dream is to be a paramedic getting this qualification will help me move on to the 999-call centre which I can then train to be a paramedic whilst being on the 999 calls. The apprenticeship has been a small steppingstone to get my close to my career goal.

What is your proudest achievement so far?

My proudest achievement so far is obviously getting distinctions in all aspects of my apprenticeship, but also all the other opportunities Sky have given me. For example, I am a mental health and wellbeing advocate, and I am also a part of the Tik Tok team here at Sky.

What advice would you give to someone applying for or considering this apprenticeship?

Do not be scared to ask questions because I guarantee someone else has the same questions but is too nervous to ask. No questions are silly questions. Be 100% yourself and you will go far in life not just in the apprenticeship, be confident and get your face and name out there and lots of opportunities will come with that. Never doubt what you can do you can do anything you put your mind to!