Interview with Eugene: why I chose an apprenticeship

Good afternoon Eugene, could you tell us a bit about yourself?

Good afternoon! I used to study IT and business at a college in London and today I am doing an apprenticeship at Sir Plus, an e-commerce website for quality British clothing.

What’s your role at Sir Plus?

I’m in charge of web administration and search engine optimisation. I deal with pushing our website higher in the rankings of search engines like Google and Yahoo. To do that, I have to configure the website to make sure it is optimised for search engines. One way of doing this is to ensure that it's easy for the customers to view and use the website. I also have to make sure that the stock of clothing matches what we display on the website. Finally, I add products to the sites, by editing descriptions and adding pictures and other content.

Why did you choose to do an apprenticeship?

I am hard working and I enjoy learning new things. I like to be challenged to put my skills to the test and get the job done. But I feel I need real-world experience to further my career and skills, and that’s why I chose an apprenticeship. I thought it would be good to start with a small business and progress with it as the business grows.

Why did you decide not to go university?

I didn’t want to study anymore. I am more of a hands-on person. I prefer to learn by doing and get out there in the world rather than listening to teachers or reading text books.

How did you find the process of securing an apprenticeship?

I looked for IT jobs because that is my main area of interest, and I want to develop my skills in the sector. I used apprenticeship.org, and I looked for IT vacancies.

I must admit that sometimes it was a daunting process – I was going back and forth between the website and the employer’s site to apply, and some of the application questions were very long.


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