Hello, I’m Ashley and I’ve just completed my apprenticeship here at Dogsbody Technology and I want to tell you why it was AWESOME!

When I came to Dogsbody I was finishing my first year at University studying Maths & Physics. I chose being an apprentice with Dogsbody rather than continuing with University and have now finished with a distinction, a full-time job and some amazing colleagues.

IT and Linux were completely new to me, but I quickly knew I had made the right decision. I’d be able to use my problem solving, organisational skills and passion for learning whilst working towards my Level 3 Infrastructure Technician qualification. I really grew to love, enjoy and appreciate technology.

Going this route wasn’t without risk but I chose it for the three main reasons, all of which have paid off…

1. Long days with working and studying separately
2. Student loan debt
3. The ability to progress through a career faster and choose the qualifications.

 

Working and Study Time

Being an apprentice meant I was able to plan my time more effectively. Having evenings and weekends free, without work and study played a large role in looking for an apprenticeship. I didn’t wish to give up education and really enjoy learning but planning time for university studying, lessons, reports & exams was becoming increasingly impossible. Not forgetting time for work, children and a social life.

After joining my apprenticeship I found planning my time a lot easier. I was able to start and finish work at the same time each week. Exams were booked around or in work times and I was able to book more solid childcare.

Student Loan Debt

Instead of paying for education with work (and parenting) on the side, I would be paid to work and learn at the same time!

My income was a set amount each month. Comparing this to variable part-time work wages alongside my university studies, it was much easier to keep track of my finances. I felt much more financially secure with the apprenticeship, even when the monthly wage was sometimes lower than part-time work for the first year.

It is important to check the current minimum wages for Apprenticeships and the National Minimum Wage to check if an apprenticeship will work for you.  It’s safe to say that now I’ve finished my apprenticeship I no longer need to worry about this 😉

Progressing through more personalised qualifications quicker

Learning from home using the Open University suited me at the time of applying but it quickly became obvious that it is a difficult way to learn long term.

Most of the jobs I was applying for were asking for practical experiences over qualifications. This meant I had less physical experience to gain whilst at university.

As an apprentice, I was hands-on, working day-to-day and learning through active means to achieve the tasks set. I was able to get advice and lessons from tutors, management and fellow colleagues.

Post Apprenticeship

Since finishing my apprenticeship I’ve been able to use the  skills I’ve gained, to progress further and become a full-time Linux Systems Engineer.

I’m excited to continue my further education, system administration training and career with Dogsbody Technology.

For more information about Apprenticeships visit https://www.apprenticeships.gov.uk/

 

Fancy getting a qualification, pay and a very high probability of a permanent job at the end of your apprenticeship? Sign up to our mailing list to be the first to know when we open application for our next intake.

 

Feature image by ThisisEngineering RAEng licensed Unsplash.

This week (3-7 February) is National Apprenticeship Week 2020.  Dogsbody Technology have been hiring IT apprentices since 2013 and have seen A LOT of apprentice CV’s in that time!

It still surprises us that applicants don’t sell themselves well, and is one of the biggest reasons we still give telephone interviews to a vast majority of the CV’s we get sent.

Let us help you a little with our guide on how to impress an IT employer like ourselves…

Be more than just grades

Some people are academic and some people aren’t… apprenticeships are designed for people who can’t or don’t want to go to university (and let’s not even mention the minimum 27K debt for university graduates). At Dogsbody we are not just interested in a list of good grades; we want to see and hear about the things you are passionate about, what you have taught yourself, what you have done outside of education! It’s key to find things that keep you interested and just “play” with as much tech as you can 🙂

I set this company up to play with big servers and big infrastructure so why not get paid to do it … the best staff are the ones that just want to play with technology too. We come to work to play.
– Dan Benton, Director of Dogsbody Technology

Raspberry Pi & Arduino

There is so much affordable tech out there right now. Raspberry Pi and Arduino are at the forefront where you can get a fully working system for £15-45. With them you can learn everything from Linux internals, Python programming or Game design.

At Dogsbody HQ we are big fans of Raspberry Pi (we have 4-5 around the office doing a variety of jobs). It’s an awesome tool for people to learn as it’s cheap, powerful and, of course, open source.  There is a great index of projects that should be a great source of inspiration.

Arduino allows you to learn I/O based programming with ease. We designed a pizza order printer for one of our first customers using Arduino that is still in use to this day.  More examples can be found on their projects page.

Magazine, Blogs and news

Access to information has never been easier (back in my day we had a copy of Microsoft Encarta and were grateful 😉 ). Youtube, podcasts and free online courses mean you can learn anything you want for free off your own back.

We specifically recommend Raspberry Pi blog and their magazines, MagPi, Wireframe and HackSpace magazines which you can buy in the shops but are also totally free to download!

You’ll be amazed at what you can learn for free in your spare time.

Hacker Space / Maker Groups

A hackerspace (also referred to as a hacklab, hackspace, or makerspace) is a community-operated, often “not for profit” , workspace where people with common interests, such as computers, machining, technology, science, digital art, or electronic art, can meet, socialize and collaborate.

Check out your local maker spaces and any local after school or college clubs (they don’t usually have to be your school or college). A quick google should show you what is in your area but we particularly recommend checking out Code Club and CoderDojo. A great way to try new things, make friends with like minded people and find out what really interests you with little investment.

Of course if you want to go full geek – we highly recommend Glastonbury for Geeks – EMF Camp.

Fancy a career in Linux IT? Take a look at our our jobs page for our current openings.

Also check out our open letter to future apprentices to see more way to impress us or other employers.

One of the great benefits of being a member of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is it gives you a chance to be heard. This has been especially true of their representation of business owners with apprentices such as ourselves.  I am proud to have been interviewed extensively for the latest FSB research into the new apprenticeship system.

The apprenticeship system has changed a lot in the last 7 years that we’ve been offering them.  Most have been good changes but implemented quite badly.  For example, the implementation of an independent end point assessment is a great initiative as it really helps stop both companies and training providers from abusing the apprenticeship system for cheap labour; however details of what the assessment should involve, who would provide it and how much it should cost weren’t available from the government when some people (one of our staff included) where already starting their apprenticeship.

The latest in depth study conducted by the FSB into the new apprenticeship system includes a 50 page “Fit for the future” report. A number of businesses were interviewed for this report including myself and other Dogsbody Technology staff.  You can find quotes from us on pages 26, 30 and 36 should you wish 😉

Some of the results are pretty damning, such as over a quarter of businesses saying that the reforms have had a negative impact on their business and over a third of businesses not being aware of some of the funding that is available.  We shouldn’t be too quick to throw the baby out with the bathwater though.  The apprenticeship system is still fit for purpose, it just could be a better fit, especially for small businesses.

We have only scratched the surface of the report.  I would encourage you to read the full report if you have time.

On the off chance you don’t have time to read the full report I have summarised the conclusions here…

1. Small businesses are crucial to driving productivity across the country and require skills that will enable them to prosper.
2. Small businesses are heavily reliant on the Level 2 and 3 frameworks meaning that the number of apprenticeships offered by small businesses may further decrease in the next couple of years.
3. The cost of delivering apprenticeships in small businesses has also increased, which has had an impact on the capacity of small businesses to hire apprentices.
4. There has been a deterioration in the quality of training and assessment provision across England.
5. There are legitimate concerns about the future of the apprenticeship funding system, given that standards are more expensive than frameworks.
6. There are significant risks that the situation will worsen as the apprenticeship system evolves.

If you are a small tech business thinking of taking on apprentices then do get in touch, we would love help you get started.

Here at Dogsbody HQ we have found one of the the best ways to grow our business and get the skills we require is to run an apprenticeship programme.

We interview throughout the year looking for the keenest candidates. Having hired 7 apprentices over the past 5 years and interviewed many many more we thought we would share with all our future employees what we take away from your first impressions.

The world of work can be a scary prospect and completely different to your school and college days.

Your first full time position and the steps to secure it can be daunting so here are some hints and tips for what we at Dogsbody Technology like to look for in our candidates:

Submitting your CV

You have found the job you want and are ready to submit your CV – The first impressions start from this moment so:

• Submit your CV in PDF; It means your prospect employers sees it the way you intended – send it in .doc or .odt and it can lose its formatting.
• Use an appropriate email address; bigcheeks@example.com may have been appropriate for your Amazon account but not for your CV. Email addresses are free, get an appropriate one.
• Switch on your Voicemail; If you’re busy and I call, how do you know I will bother calling back?  Which leads me to my second point…
• Set a Voicemail message – If the default VM message is just your number how do I know I have reached the correct person? Make sure you set a message like ‘you have reached the mobile of (you). Please leave a message’.
• Answer your phone politely; I know ‘unknown to you’ numbers could be spam but when you’re applying for jobs you have to answer the phone as if it’s your future employer! If you want to be extra organised put the office number of the companies you applied to in your phone so it hopefully comes up ‘Dogsbody Technology’ but never answer the phone ‘yes’… not a great first impression…

Impressing in a CV or interview (telephone or face to face)

It’s potentially your first full time job (but we hope you have done something else) so make sure you tell us what you have done – in your CV preferably.

Dogsbody Technology give every applicant a telephone interview… why? Because we once hired someone whose CV never mentioned anything about all of the technical things they had done – it was only in the telephone interview they mentioned them – if we hadn’t called we would’ve never known!

Things to mention

• Work experience – Work Experience is invaluable – It doesn’t have to be in the field you are applying for a job in now (IT for us) but it shows so much. The classic ‘Saturday job’ is still a strong tick in the box.
• If you have tinkered with tech – You earn big points if you tinker with tech – get a Raspberry Pi, Install Ubuntu on your laptop, even AWS servers are pennies to run – don’t just follow the guides parrot fashion – Explore, find out what the commands you are typing actually do!  An apprenticeship is about learning on the job and practical experience. When they don’t teach this stuff in school we want to see you are keen to teach/learn yourself.

Things to remember

• Playing games is not an interest in computers – Sorry but its a hobby, unless you want to be a games developer or games tester than playing computer games is not an interest in computers. We all play computer games at Dogsbody Technology but it doesn’t help us be a Sysadmin 🙂 List it under hobbies.

• Grades aren’t everything – Your teachers will hate us for saying this however unless you want to be a doctor or have to get specific grades for a college/uni course then if academia isn’t your thing don’t worry. Apprenticeship are designed to be for the practical among us. To do an apprenticeship you need Maths and English at grade C (4 in the new system) or above, but even if you don’t have that you can do a key skill module during your apprenticeship to get you there.

Finally we loved this image from Dave Cornthwaite; add “Good Manners” and we think it a pretty good starting point…

 

Potential is essential  – What we do isn’t taught in schools/college so we don’t expect you to know it all but we do expect you to be passionate about tech.

If you want to join an established company who is an established Apprenticeship provider in Linux Sysadmin then apply now for our proven Linux Apprenticeship

Want more Apprenticeship advise – read our Apprentice Guide: How to Impress IT Employers