When Grace Wood left school at 18, she opted for an apprenticeship rather than college or university and went to work for independent training provider WS Training as an apprentice Data and Onboarding Administrator. From gaining a Distinction and then a promotion, Grace is now aiming to become an apprenticeship tutor/assessor herself after being asked to support two fellow apprentices with their maths. 

What is your role at WS Training? 
I started at WS Training in 2021 as an apprentice Data and Onboarding Administrator and I did the Business Admin Level 3 qualification. It took me around 18 months to work towards my apprenticeship, finally achieving a Distinction. This led to me receiving a promotion as a Business Development Co-ordinator. In my previous role, I was dealing with the recruitment and onboarding of apprentices. I’m still doing some of that now, but I’m also working with employers to upskill their current employees onto an apprenticeship. 

Are you continuing your learning? 
I’m currently studying for the Level 2 award in Information, Advice and Guidance which I’m hoping to complete in the next couple of weeks. Once that’s complete, I’m looking to do the Level 3 award in Education and Training so that I can progress to become a maths tutor, helping apprentices on programme to pass their functional skills. 

How did you develop an interest in becoming a maths tutor? 
Whilst I was doing my apprenticeship, there were a couple of other apprentices who were really struggling to pass their maths exam, so they could sit their end-point assessment. Senior management asked me if I could step in and help because I’d recently completed my GCSE maths and knew the updated methods. They asked me if I wanted to try tutoring the two apprentices, so I did and I enjoyed the whole process. I was able to develop my own skills as well as tutor the apprentices and was really happy to help learners achieve their maths. 

What did you like about teaching maths? 
I enjoyed going out to see the learners on a one-to-one basis. With maths there is only one real answer, so it’s teaching the same thing over and over, and when something finally clicks and the learner understands it, it’s such a good feeling of achievement. At WS Training our learning is mainly done face to face and on a one-to-one basis, meaning I could give the apprentices my full attention and have in-depth sessions with them, which I really liked. 

Do you see your career progressing into teaching? 
Yes, I do. I’m not sure about teaching groups, because I do prefer the one-to-one side and I’ve never taught a group before. I think I could start off with smaller groups and then work my way up, just to improve my confidence. But becoming a one-to-one tutor/assessor would be great. 

Why did you choose an apprenticeship? 
I never wanted to go to university. I knew when I was in sixth form that I didn’t want to go. I find it hard to focus and knuckle down when I’m left to learn in my own time and when there’s no structure to what I’m doing. With the apprenticeship, I was surrounded by what I was learning constantly and doing it in the workplace gave me structure. For my off-the-job learning, I could do one day per week or I could do a couple of hours every day. And I had my colleagues if there was anything I needed help with – they were right there with me, and my mentor as well. I think the support from within the workplace, and having that structure and those one-to-one meetings, really helped me focus and get into it. 

What was the most enjoyable aspect of doing an apprenticeship? 
Definitely the support of everyone in the company, that was great – especially my tutor Christine, who was amazing. She was always there when I needed her and was really supportive, especially with my career goals. She was helping me figure out what I wanted to do, and I could tell she was very invested in helping me achieve my goals and explore different pathways. It helped me to develop my confidence. I was so shy when I first started here, I couldn’t even pick up the phone, but now I’m fine with cold calling, employer meetings, and networking events.  

Did you have an end-point assessment? How did you find that? 
It was good, even having to do a presentation. In school I’d have cried at the thought of doing a 15-minute presentation, but I was fine. I’d prepared it well, and it flew by. I would much rather do an end-point assessment again than sit a long exam. It didn’t feel like I was being examined, I was explaining my job role, what I do, how my knowledge, skills and behaviours have improved and how I’m using them in my role, so it was more like an informal conversation. The assessor seemed genuinely interested in what I had to say, which gave me more confidence. 

Do you speak to any potential apprentices? 
I do that every day. I manage all the candidate applications we receive for the apprenticeship vacancies. This is my first job coming out of sixth form, so I can relate to all the school leavers and the position they were in, as I was in the same position just a few years ago. With my IAG course, I can explore all the different options of signposting and referral. We do develop good relationships with applicants and if they’re not successful getting an apprenticeship the first time, I can help them to apply for another apprenticeship with us or with another provider.