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Rolls-Royce Motor Cars launches 2020 apprenticeship programme
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has opened up applications for its 2020 apprenticeship programme. Now in its 14th year, the scheme is open to candidates of all ages and backgrounds.
Since its launch in 2006, the principal focus of the Rolls-Royce apprenticeship programme has been to provide practical training in the specialist craft skills required to build ‘the best car in the world’. Apprentices spend two to four years at its headquarters and manufacturing facility in Goodwood, West Sussex, working alongside the company’s world-class craftspeople in assembly, woodshop, surface finish, leathershop, parts quality and total vehicle quality management.
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has announced that applications are now open for its 2020 apprenticeship programme / Picture: Rolls-Royce
Many apprentices go on to take up full-time employment with the company, often progressing to senior supervisory, technical and management roles. The programme also enables candidates to acquire transferable skills, knowledge and qualifications that broaden their horizons and employment options, through formal vocational study at local further education colleges.
The programme was expanded in 2019 with the introduction of the Sir Ralph Robins Degree Apprenticeship. To complement practical training, candidates study to degree level, including BEng in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Chichester’s new Engineering & Digital Technology Park. The number of places on offer has doubled for 2020.
Torsten Müller-Ötvös, chief executive officer of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, said: “Our apprenticeship programme is one of our greatest achievements, providing unique professional and personal development opportunities for talented people. I am delighted that so many of our previous apprentices are still with us and it is very satisfying to know that Rolls-Royce trained craftspeople are contributing to the wider success of British manufacturing.
“Our Degree Apprenticeships were created in 2019 to recognise the contribution to the business of Sir Ralph Robins, one of Rolls-Royce’s non-executive directors. The response was phenomenal: the volume and quality of applications showed that this new pathway answered a real need.”
The number of places available on Sir Ralph Robins Degree Apprenticeships has doubled for 2020 / Picture: Rolls-Royce
All applicants take part in a rigorous selection process designed to assess their individual strengths, aptitudes, personal qualities and potential. Successful candidates will join the company in August 2020.
The launch is timed to coincide with National Apprenticeship Week (3-7 February 2020). This year’s event is based on the theme ‘Look Beyond’, and celebrates the diversity and value that apprenticeships bring to employers, apprentices and communities across England today.