Last year, we sat down with Lisa Hunt, who at the time was a Lead IQA in our End-Point Assessments (EPA) team, and around halfway through her own Level 5 Operations/Departmental Manager apprenticeship.
Just over a year on, and Lisa has completed her apprenticeship with distinction, and been promoted to Curriculum Manager at FuturU!
In this article, Lisa shares an update on her apprenticeship journey, outlining her EPA experience, tips for those approaching their own assessment, and plans for the future.
Has your apprenticeship supported your career development?
Absolutely! I was promoted to Curriculum Manager for our regulated qualifications because of my apprenticeship, so it’s definitely been beneficial for me.
Day-to-day, my apprenticeship has really helped me with strategic planning – in my new role I have to put together business proposals for qualifications, and I have much better insight into how to do that now. I’d managed people before, but the apprenticeship has given me an understanding of the theory too. Now I can identify leadership styles, and understand why I need to do things a certain way.
What do you think has been your single biggest takeaway from your apprenticeship?
I’ve realised that I really do enjoy learning. Doing an apprenticeship is totally different to being at school where you have to do certain subjects. This is a qualification I wanted to do and sought out because I was genuinely interested in it. And I’ve really enjoyed it.
In terms of my work, the apprenticeship has opened up new opportunities. I’m sure what I’ve learned helped me when I was interviewing for my new role. And this experience has definitely helped me to empathise with the learners we’re supporting through their own qualification journeys with FuturU too.
How has FuturU supported you through your apprenticeship?
FuturU has been very supportive. They’ve given me one day a week to do the required off the job training. They’ve allowed me to take on extra responsibilities and to shadow others. And they’ve been responsive answering any questions I have. I’m particularly thankful to Helen, Liam, Claudia and Becca for their support throughout my apprenticeship journey – without them, I wouldn’t be where I am today.
How was your apprenticeship assessed?
Once I’d completed the in-learning part of the apprenticeship, I had to do a project and an interview based on my portfolio. The hour-long interview was purely based on the work I’d completed and submitted to the awarding organisation.
I had 12 weeks to put together my project and write a 4,000 word report. I also had to prepare a 21 slide presentation, and had 20 minutes to present this, followed by 40 minutes of questions. For my project, I focused on developing a menopause policy, which has now been introduced at FuturU, so it’s had a lasting impact on our team.
To prepare, I looked at the key behaviours and my own notes, and made sure I had examples to demonstrate how I’d met those behaviours and developed skills.
I was very surprised because I expected I’d be nervous, but I wasn’t at all. I tried not to spend too much time worrying about it, and focused on the fact that it was the final step in my apprenticeship journey.
What are your tips for other apprentices approaching their assessment?
Prepare yourself, and make sure you’re ready. Look back at the work you’ve done, review the standards that’ll be covered in the assessment, and make sure you have an awareness of the topics that’ll be covered.
And try not to worry! You’ve covered everything that might come up – you wouldn’t have gotten to this point if you weren’t ready.
Read next: What to expect before, during and after your End-Point Assessment →
Would you recommend an apprenticeship to others?
Yes, definitely. There’s some old fashioned views on apprenticeships, like that you’ll be on minimum wage, but that’s not always the case. It’s really helped me in my career – I’ve actually been promoted because of it!
You’ve got to want to do it – you’ve got to be motivated and want to learn. There’s a lot of training to be done, but it’s all done in your workplace, in protected time.
I’ve actually asked my assessor what I could do next, and am considering the Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship in Management. I’ll take a break first, but I really do miss the Fridays I allocated to my apprenticeship, and the research I got to do.
Read next: Apprenticeship and EPA myths busted →
