King’s College London recruited their first IT apprentices in London this year, a project which saw eight level 3 apprentices working on the IT TechBars, which provide on-campus support for IT issues. The apprentices were recruited with the aim of providing King’s staff and students with a friendly, face-to-face service, resolving and referring IT issues.
The apprentices have had a variety of roles and responsibilities as part of their apprenticeship, from helping people connect to Wi-Fi, installing software, resetting passwords, or any other hardware advice. When not on the service desk, they helped the End User Services teams, where tasks included audio/visual and desktop support.
The benefits
The apprentices have also won rave reviews from the students they have helped during their time at King’s. The IT department’s remedy system offers every user the opportunity to submit feedback following an engagement with the help desk.
The speed with which the apprentices developed the skills required to make a real contribution to their teams exceeded the expectations of the department, and demonstrates the value and benefits of the scheme. One apprentice so excelled in his role he successfully applied for a permanent job with King’s IT before completing his course. The other apprentices are now focusing on the full-time roles and further learning opportunities available to them on completion of their apprenticeships. The option of progression to Level 4 means the company can retain their apprentices for longer while they further develop their learning.
