The first month of your apprenticeship is a chance to settle in, get used to how things work and starting working towards your goals!
So what can you do in the first month of your apprenticeship? Make it your goal to see how you can apply your own skills, strengths and personal qualities to helping the organisation be its best.
Get to know the people you work with
You should be able to remember all their names by now. And you will also be able to learn more about how they work together. In the first month of your apprenticeship you can start to form connections with team members you feel comfortable with. You can learn how things are done in this company, and what kind of behaviour is considered to be a good fit.
Some workplaces have banter, and some don’t. Every workplace is different. Don’t push the boundaries of what is acceptable and what isn’t. See how your co-workers do things to give you useful clues on how to behave. If in doubt, stay polite and friendly and humble. Don’t get involved in workplace gossip if you can help it. It’s a fresh start and it’s still your first month. Everyone understand you need a little time to find your feet and get comfortable in this new environment!
Find your feet by setting yourself good habits
You now have a chance to not just learn new things, but also think about how you want to organise yourself to do your work. You may choose to give yourself daily to-do lists, or set up your day planner or work calendar in a certain way.
You can also keep helping out with small things like offering to make people a tea or coffee when you get one yourself.
Aim to use all your work time in useful ways – doing your work, helping others in the team, learning and researching and training, and coming up with better ways of doing things if you can think of any.
Do whatever tasks you have been given to the best of your ability. They may be small tasks at first, but they are important. It is important to do them right. That is how you will shine and impress in your first month. It is called taking ownership of your role.
Get a good understanding of what your manager expects of you
Every manager has their own way of doing things. Keep looking out for clues about what they like best when it comes to asking them for help (or offering help with a project, because you are motivated and a great member of the team).
Talk with them to understand what is a good way of setting priorities for the tasks that come your way. What do they need you to do every day, or every week? If a new project comes in, should it become your new priority, or first thing to do before you complete your regular tasks?
It’s never too early to start preparing for your End-point Assessment!
In your first month you are learning and doing all kinds of new things. And being able to demonstrate that will feed into passing your apprenticeship, so start getting prepared! If your End-point Assessment needs you to produce a Portfolio of Evidence, start collecting that evidence now, as you go. Get into good habits of noting down your achievements and documenting real-life examples of how you have learned the skills, competencies and behaviours expected of you during your apprenticeship.
In your first month and beyond, get familiar with what exactly is required of you in terms of your apprenticeship, so that you can actively work towards success.
Keep an open mind and recognise you still have a lot to learn
You don’t know what’s best for the company – you are still learning, and you have a lot of information to learn and think about over the next few months
Thank people who share their time and energy with you. Appreciate that they are sharing information you need to know, and maybe even training you with new skills and ways of doing things. You are still new, so it is more important for you to listen to others.
If you have an idea, that’s great! Be sure to tell your line manager. They can weigh up the benefits of a new project or way of doing things. Then they can make changes in the workplace, or check in with the rest of the organisation to see what useful next steps could be.
Congratulations on doing your first month in your apprenticeship!
Now you are ready to dive into the world of work and CHALLENGE yourself.
