Beating 'imposter syndrome' with a postgraduate-level apprenticeship

Why this apprenticeship?

"I originally applied for the Senior Leader Apprenticeship at a time of change in my career. I had just been promoted to a Head of Service role; a much more strategic role than my previous one. My previous leadership training was a Postgraduate Certificate course completed back in 2008, so it seemed like a good time to refresh some previous learning as well as learning and participating in a much more strategic role."

How I have benefitted

"The main benefits of attending the course have been an ability to focus more on the future of my services rather than dealing with day-to-day and short-term issues. I also feel much more confident in my role — at first, I had some strong feelings of 'imposter syndrome'.

"As a result of my final project and end point assessment, I was asked to join a ‘Working Smarter’ team: a group of senior leaders tasked with delivering change and transformation across the organisation. This has helped me gain insight into other areas of the business I would not normally be exposed to, as well as enabling me to practice some of the transferable skills acquired during the apprenticeship."

"In terms of professional development and career progression, the learning itself and the on-the-job work I completed throughout the programme have given me some great examples to include in future applications and on my CV. These were opportunities that I would not normally have been given and that demonstrate a wide range of skills and knowledge."

Advice to those considering this apprenticeship

"My advice would be to go for it and throw yourself in, you won’t regret it. There is some hard work to do, but it is more than worth it, for both your own development and the organisation's as a whole. Another tip is to ensure you gather the evidence for the end point assessment as you go along, because this will make the end of the apprenticeship so much easier!"