{"id":11418,"date":"2019-05-21T08:13:49","date_gmt":"2019-05-21T08:13:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-gb\/industry\/blog\/?p=11418"},"modified":"2019-09-02T15:37:11","modified_gmt":"2019-09-02T15:37:11","slug":"microsoft-apprenticeships-degree","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-gb\/industry\/blog\/beyourfuture\/2019\/05\/21\/microsoft-apprenticeships-degree\/","title":{"rendered":"Microsoft Apprenticeships and Degree Apprenticeships: My Story"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Be<\/h3>\n

A blog by Tom Light, focusing on apprenticeships and degree apprenticeships at Microsoft and his experience in Microsoft’s Early in Career community.<\/h3>\n

\"MicrosoftI owe a lot to the Microsoft apprenticeships and degree apprenticeships<\/a> programme. Driving past the Microsoft sign and into the Reading campus on a Monday morning in September 2017, I felt an overwhelming sense of excitement and achievement. I was a tech-savvy 23-year-old, and this moment felt almost like a dream. Having not yet received my employee badge, I did briefly have to explain to security that it was my first day. But that didn\u2019t bother me one bit \u2013 I was proud to be one of the newest members of the Microsoft family.<\/p>\n

\"TomIt wasn\u2019t my first time visiting Microsoft UK headquarters, but it was my first time arriving as an employee \u2013 and if I\u2019m honest, I almost took my little hatchback off-roading towards the campus lake because I was so absorbed in that slightly surreal moment. They say it\u2019s always important to make an immediate impression. I don\u2019t think tyre tracks over the immaculately-cut grass would have been the best stamp to leave on day one.<\/p>\n

I had been working in a sales team at a professional football club since leaving school after completing my A-Levels when I was 18. University never felt like the right path for me. Don\u2019t get me wrong \u2013 I\u2019ve always been hardworking and driven, but at that time in my life that drive had steered me down a path towards starting my career as soon as possible, to have an impact on a business, to earn money, and \u2013 as I saw it \u2013 to be ‘an adult’.<\/p>\n

Have I ever reflected on where I\u2019d be now if I\u2019d taken an alternative route? Most definitely. Do I regret the choice I made back in 2012? Absolutely not.<\/p>\n

An opportunity presents itself<\/h2>\n

It had often crossed my mind that my aspiration of working for a tech giant could have passed me by. I\u2019d always had a keen interest in Microsoft in particular, having been brought up surrounded and empowered by their everyday applications like Office and having gone through the education system immersed in a Windows ecosystem. And the fact that the main Microsoft UK offices are pretty much on my doorstep only sharpened my interest. I\u2019m extremely lucky to have a 10-minute commute to the Thames Valley Park campus here in Reading, but I\u2019d have travelled countless miles and sat in endless traffic for this opportunity.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s exactly what I saw one day \u2013 an opportunity. Looking at the Microsoft careers website, I spotted the advert for apprenticeships within the UK. At first, I clicked it more out of curiosity than anything else, but that single click was the moment that completely transformed my career.<\/p>\n

Five years before, when I was preparing to leave school, there was a stigma attached to apprenticeships. The range of industries that offered them were limited, and they were broadly viewed as an option for people who ‘didn\u2019t have the grades’ for university or a job that was seen as a ‘proper career path’. Sadly, my sixth form wasn\u2019t particularly helpful for those of us who weren\u2019t applying to universities \u2013 there was a definite feeling of isolation and a lack of support there.<\/p>\n

The evolving apprenticeship path<\/h2>\n

I was surprised at what I found online five years later in 2012. The scope of apprenticeships had clearly evolved, and Microsoft offered a range of roles in both business and technical environments, while affording the chance to work towards Level 3, 4 or 6 (degree) qualifications.<\/p>\n

For a while, I\u2019d wanted to get into marketing, but the majority of roles out there were understandably aimed at university graduates. I knew I didn\u2019t want to go back to being a full-time student, but further digging led me to the discovery that Microsoft offered a number of marketing positions as part of their apprenticeship scheme \u2013 tick!<\/p>\n

I had recently turned 23, and the scheme was open to applicants aged between 16 and 24 (this has since been made completely open) \u2013 tick! I took a punt\u2026<\/p>\n

My application journey<\/h2>\n

Within a few days, I received an email thanking me for my application. As I read further, it became apparent that my application had in fact been unsuccessful as I was ‘underqualified’, despite having the relevant GCSE grades required.<\/p>\n

Naturally I queried this, and it turned out I had submitted my four A-Levels into the GCSEs box. Microsoft kindly rectified my administrative error. They must have thought \u201cWe\u2019ve got a right one here!\u201d \u2013 but despite this, I was delighted to be offered a video interview. Just thought I\u2019d throw that little story in. We all make mistakes, but we\u2019re only human and people get that. It\u2019s how we rectify them and learn from them that really counts.<\/p>\n

After completing the video interview, I was thrilled to be offered a place at an assessment centre held at the UK headquarters in Reading. I was one of 10 individuals and the eldest, as I expected, but that didn\u2019t bother me. I was part of a group of young, hungry individuals \u2013 myself in more sense than one as I\u2019d been too nervous to eat breakfast \u2013 and we were all there for the same reason. We all knew what an incredible opportunity we had to make a positive impression and earn a role at one of the world\u2019s largest companies.<\/p>\n

\"TheOne of the key parts of the day was an individual interview. There were a variety of hiring managers there, but it just so happened that I was interviewed by Danielle Crayton. Danielle was a Senior Product Marketing Manager for the Surface product portfolio. Although I was open to marketing opportunities anywhere within the very broad Microsoft business, being a hardware lover, my dream role would have been working in the devices team. This was my opportunity to show my passion and knowledge to an influential person within that field \u2013 and the rest, as they say, is history.<\/p>\n

The following week, Danielle offered me a role within her team. To say I was ecstatic would be a huge understatement. After further discussions with her following the assessment centre, it became even more apparent that the stereotypical view of apprenticeships was sorely outdated. Apprentices are not tea and coffee makers. They are not assistants. They are real members of real teams with even realer responsibilities and unimaginable opportunities ahead of them.<\/p>\n

My role at Microsoft<\/h2>\n

Over the past 18 months, I have represented Microsoft and told our Surface and Modern Workplace story to both existing and new customers at huge events like Future Decoded and BETT, as well as at many smaller first- and third-party events. I\u2019ve also led our internal communication and readiness streams, focusing on how we can further empower our internal sales teams and partner community.<\/p>\n

My favourite part of my position has been playing an important role in the preparation and execution surrounding new product launches. The trust and faith put in me, as an apprentice, to know things such as our product roadmap and to be able to be a part of launch planning months in advance of announcements \u2013 well, it\u2019s most certainly not the vision of an apprentice role that I had in my head beforehand. It\u2019s overwhelmingly beyond that.<\/p>\n

\"TomAdd all of the above and more to the fact that Microsoft have invested in my development with marketing-centric qualifications (including a Level 4 Award from the Chartered Institute of Marketing) to complement my day job. I am unbelievably grateful for everything this company has allowed me to achieve. If I had any words of advice for somebody thinking about applying to become a Microsoft apprentice, I\u2019d limit myself to four: Just go for it!<\/p>\n

Taking this path has been the best decision I\u2019ve ever made. I\u2019ve built a great network, both internally and externally; become more qualified than I was 18 months ago; and am now stepping off of my apprentice programme to join our UK Public Relations team as a Communications Manager.<\/p>\n

When I was 23 and thought a career in marketing within the technology industry was starting to appear to be beyond me, I had no idea that it was just around the corner, ready and waiting for me.<\/p>\n

Apprenticeships at Microsoft<\/h2>\n

Please find more information below on the types of apprenticeships we are offering, based in Reading and London, from October 2019:<\/p>\n