EPA Success for Roq's Amazing Team of Apprentices

The Journey Begins

Since January 2023, our apprenticeship programme has been a major success and working alongside S&A Academy (who worked with our apprentices through their portfolios and final assessments), the team have been able to work towards their Level 4 Software Testing Apprenticeship Certification with outstanding results.

It is easy to forget how nervous it is to start a new role, but as an apprentice you are starting a journey within a new company, a new set of colleagues, in an industry they may never have worked in before. Therefore, introductions are always vital, and having a plan of action for how the team will progress through the next 15 months was key to enabling the apprentices to get the best possible outcomes and learn along the way.

The apprentices started their journey with a comprehensive Roq induction and ‘Bootcamp’ which provides a first-rate introduction to Quality Engineering. It enables them to gain a clear understanding of the Software Delivery Lifecycle (SDLC) and how it is used in business to ensure the quality of code, functionality and applications are delivered to the highest of standards. Applying recognised best practices, we provide knowledge of the process for validating and assuring software effectively and ensure everyone has a good introduction to the coding languages used by delivery teams throughout the industry. The team were also introduced to their Career Support Managers who were there to offer help and support throughout the entire process and beyond.

The S&A Academy then introduced the apprentices to the journey they will be taking toward earning their apprenticeship award by engaging them in portfolio work and British Computer Society (BCS) assessments. Each apprentice maintained weekly work diaries to reflect on their accomplishments and note any skill development. Additionally, they completed math and English competency tasks and worked through one module per month using the Basic Key Skills Builder platform (BKSB).

Portfolios

As part of the apprenticeship, each Roq Apprentice had to collate their own professional portfolio. The portfolios are a terrific way of showcasing the apprentice’s journey and the work they have completed. It helps them to document the growth they make throughout the process, the skills they gain and any achievements. Throughout this time, they have been able to upskill in technical areas and use this to help boost their portfolios making them strong and learning along the way about industry standards and best practices. This process along with regular catchup with career support managers, and the S&A Academy team ensures that they can pass each of the requirements set and go one step further and achieve a merit or distinction.

This hasn’t been a straightforward process for the apprentices. Given that we want all our Academy Consultants to grow into strong Quality Engineers, we have also tasked the team on completing automation frameworks (C#), as well as working on real world client projects. Most of the team have never had any experience with coding, so this was a big challenge for them to overcome. Therefore multitasking, learning about time management, and prioritising workload were key to their successes. Upon completion of their portfolios, it was then time for the End Point Assessments.

End Point Assessments

End Point Assessments (EPA) are assessments that are driven from BCS and consist of four exams in total. Two exams are scenario based, and two are professional discussions with a BCS assessor. These sessions give the candidates the chance to discuss their understanding on certain scenarios, their understanding of testing methodologies and provide further insight into their portfolios. This allows our apprentices to showcase all the skills they have developed and show that they are able to communicate effectively and apply everything they have done into real world scenarios.

As nerves can play into assessments, the team wanted the apprentices to be fully prepared for both the professional discussions and for the scenario-based testing. For the professional discussions, S&A Academy conducted mock interviews and with the help of the Career Support Team at Roq, reviewed their portfolios to ensure all necessary details were included. This preparation ensured that apprentices were fully equipped with the knowledge of what to expect and what to discuss during these discussions. Similarly, for scenario tests, apprentices were provided with a sandpit environment, allowing them to become familiar with the format and process of scenario-based testing.

Great Success

Upon successful completion of their EPA assessments, the apprentices eagerly awaited their results. To their delight, they discovered that each of them had achieved outstanding results, a testament to their dedication and perseverance throughout the apprenticeship journey. One of the most important takeaways from this programme apart from the results is the fact that they all demonstrated the Roq values that are ingrained in the company and underpin everything we do: Straight Talking when addressing concerns or issues, a Commitment to balancing their apprenticeship alongside client work and frameworks, a pursuit of Excellence evident in their exceptional grades, and a Passionate drive to continuously learn and upskill manually and technically.

Although there have been challenges along the way, the team have also had major successes. Four of our Apprentices were put forward for S&A Academy awards that included: Going Above and Beyond Expectations in The Role, Best Problem Solver in The Workplace, and Most Improved, which is a fantastic achievement. One of Roqs apprentices Jo Greenhalgh went on to win the Going Beyond Expectations in The Role award, and then went onto win the Lancashire Apprentice Award for Digital and Technology. You can read more about the success of the Roq Apprentices in our recent National Apprenticeship Week blog.

These results are amazing!

As a company we would like to say a big thankyou to the team at S&A Academy for everything they have done over the past 12 months, feedback that Roq have received has been excellent and a true reflection on the dedication and the hard work that the apprentices have put in. Carla Stuthridge (S&A Academy Operations Manager) praised the apprentices by saying: “Great achievement – these results are amazing!". Even BCS emailed to say how impressed they are with the quality of candidates – "well done to Roq". It's been incredible to see how far the apprentices have come in this time period, and how they continue to excel every day.

What Next?

With the apprenticeship programme now complete, the apprentices will now work closely with their career support managers and automation buddies to help complete the automation assessment and ensure that they are in the best possible place and ready for the promotion to Quality Engineer (QE). This help and support won’t stop once they achieve QE though. As a company we are always helping our colleagues get to that next level of their careers and achieve their aspirations and goals. The career support team are helping them every step of the way, setting goals, helping with training, and ensuring they are getting the best opportunities on clients to help them progress through their careers.

If you'd like to learn more about Roq's Academy and Apprenticeship programmes or find out if a career at Roq is for you, please head to our careers pages or get in touch at careers@roq.co.uk