How I got in: Harriet’s apprenticeship at Severn Trent

Harriet is a recruitment consultant apprentice at Severn Trent, where she is completing a level 3 apprenticeship. In the future, she hopes to start a career in HR by completing a level 5 apprenticeship. In this video, Harriet shares how she got into Severn Trent and what it’s been like so far.

What was the application process like?

I found my job on Facebook and in the initial stage of the application, I just filled out general details about myself, including a description of why I wanted to work for Severn Trent. I then completed online tests, including a maths assessment and a strengths assessment. From this, I was emailed three strengths of mine and three weaknesses. I then progressed to the final stage, which was an online assessment centre. This included general interview questions, along with a presentation where I had to present my strengths and weaknesses and explain how I would work on them at Severn Trent. 

What’s your apprenticeship like so far?

My apprenticeship is a level three qualification, which is equivalent to an A level with a diploma. Every four weeks, my tutor will come in to teach me something that I need to learn in order to hit the learning objectives of my apprenticeship. She’ll then send me off with some work, and I’ll get one day a week off work to work on assignments. The rest of the time, I'm in the office at the Severn Trent headquarters in Coventry. After I finish this apprenticeship, I'm hoping to go on and do a level five, which would equate to an HR recruitment degree.

What do you like most and least about the apprenticeship?

The part of the apprenticeship that I love the most is learning on the job. Before this apprenticeship, I went to uni and realised that that style of learning wasn't the best for me. This apprenticeship, which has more of a ‘hands-on’ approach to learning, has helped me to flourish.  An aspect that I dislike is the fact that my apprenticeship learning is still online due to COVID. I personally prefer to see people face to face in order to learn best.

Do you have any advice for students thinking of applying?

My advice to anyone thinking of applying to Severn Trent would be to prepare well. You need to make sure that you have researched the company, as well as the job and what it will involve. There are also resources you can use to prepare for your online assessment, for example, the Practice Hub.