Meet the Apprentice
With our headquarters based in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, JFO is supporting Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2022 to show the value of apprenticeships in the workplace. JFO is proud to support apprenticeships and for several years we have worked closely with local schools and colleges to offer a diverse range of apprenticeships and vocational training for hands-on work experience and qualifications.
This year's theme is Apprenticeships Work, with the aim to highlight how apprenticeships are providing the skills employers need now and for the future.
- Through creating thousands of jobs and work-based learning opportunities across Scotland every year
- By providing employers with support to enable workforce development
- By providing a tried and tested way to develop the workforce
- To support Scotland's economic renewal
In our Meet the Apprentice series, we introduce you to some of our valued apprentices at JFO and hear from them about their apprenticeship journey so far.
Dahnni Craig
Tell us about your apprenticeship?
I’m doing a 2-year business administration apprenticeship which consists of mandatory exams and a selection of chosen modules which are relevant to my role.
What inspired you to do an apprenticeship?
I wanted to work and wasn’t keen to go into education full time but was motivated to gain a qualification, so an apprenticeship allowed me to enjoy the best of both worlds and can open a lot of doors for the future.
What has been the best part about your apprenticeship so far?
The best part about my apprenticeship so far is the opportunities for getting experience in the different departments within the company which is exciting.
What advice would you give to anyone considering an apprenticeship?
Go for it. Not only do you gain a qualification, but you also gain valuable life skills from practical learning and working within a work environment.
Dahnni and Jay
Jay Rhind
Tell us about your apprenticeship?
My apprenticeship is a 4 year mechanical maintenance apprenticeship, servicing and maintaining our offshore equipment that will go out to work on many different projects.
What inspired you to do an apprenticeship?
I was inspired to do an apprenticeship because after I left school, I wanted to get hands on and learn as much as could in workshops rather than classrooms.
What has been the best part about your apprenticeship so far?
The best part of my apprenticeship is learning and seeing how mechanical equipment works in many ways
What advice would you give to anyone considering an apprenticeship?
Advice I would give is make sure it’s an apprenticeship that you enjoy doing and stick at because it makes it a lot easier to learn when u enjoy what you’re doing
Jalissa Donaldson
Tell us about your apprenticeship?
I am currently doing the SVQ3 Business and administration course which is a 2-year course and covers a broad range of activities with significant complexity and responsibility. Mandatory units cover managing workload, communicating, planning and improving own performance in a business environment. There is also a wide range of optional units including work responsibilities, document production and design, managing events, customer service, managing business resources and managing information and data.
What inspired you to do an apprenticeship?
I didn’t start my apprenticeship as soon as I started my job like most candidates. I had been doing my job at JFO 2 years before the apprenticeship option was offered to me. I honestly wasn’t too keen to start with as I had just finished school and didn’t really want to look at studying ever again! it was our training and competency manager Linsay, who explained what a great opportunity it would be, that convinced me to put my name down.
What has been the best part about your apprenticeship so far?
There are two other people who are doing the same course as myself and we all started at the same time so when we go in to do exams, we get a couple of hours to go in and have lunch together and discuss the exam before hand which makes myself a lot less nervous.
What advice would you give to anyone considering an apprenticeship?
It is actually a really good opportunity, you get to choose what units you want to do as well as when to do the work so you don’t feel overwhelmed and its always good to have an extra qualification, whatever job/industry you end up choosing.
Ellen Collie
Tell us about your apprenticeship?
My apprenticeship is Business Administration which is all self-study with mandatory college exams for admin basics and the rest are modules chosen by me that fit my job and purpose. This is spread over a 2-year period of my apprenticeship.
What inspired you to do an apprenticeship?
Having not taken admin in secondary school and looking towards that for a career, I thought it would be difficult to get noticed, however, an apprenticeship is a way of getting your foot in the door to start your career while earning a wage.
What’s been the best part about your apprenticeship so far?
The best part about my apprenticeship so far is doing my job and not feeling like an apprentice. There is no restricted work, there is always something to learn about the business. Learning on the side is a bonus.
What advice would you give to anyone considering an apprenticeship?
My advice would be to not think you are too old to apply for an apprenticeship. It is there for anyone that wants to learn and start a career in something. It’s not solely based on school leavers.
Darren Chapman
Tell us about your apprenticeship?
I completed my level 3 in business management. This course allowed me to use my day to day tasks to obtain and apprenticeship whilst being mentored by my tutor.
What inspired you to do an apprenticeship?
I was approached by my line manager to do this apprenticeship as part of my career development plan. I was really intrigued that I could obtain an apprenticeship by using the skills I already utilise day to day and develop these in more depth. Having completed a technical apprenticeship in manufacturing engineering upon leaving school I was keen to get back into the education system and learn some more skills as part of my development.
What has been the best part about your apprenticeship so far?
The best part of my apprenticeship was seeing my personal improvement within my role with the skills that I learned during training sessions. Although I obtained my apprenticeship using day to day skills, it was amazing how much more understanding I had for each unit after every session and how I could utilise these skills within my job role.
What advice would you give to anyone considering an apprenticeship?
Go for it! I have already adapted how I approach and deal with situations based on skills learnt from my apprenticeship.
