Amy Rees, first-year Graduate Management Trainee in Workforce and Resourcing, talks about her experience on the graduate scheme.
I’m Amy, and I’m a graduate of SCW’s Graduate Management Scheme within the Workforce Team. I started on the scheme in October 2021 and have since mainly been involved with two projects: workforce planning on a national digital project, and more recently recruitment for a leadership programme. When I initially started, I also did a few internal pieces of work. It’s been really varied, and I have definitely been supported with everything I am doing. Previously I studied French and Spanish at University and had worked in completely different sectors, so this support has made the transition much smoother.
Applying to the scheme - I applied to the scheme because I wanted to make a positive difference, kick start my career in a really strong way, and finally because I was attracted to the diversity of work that SCW gets involved in, as I thought this would provide really great foundations for learning lots! The continued training and levels of responsibility that were offered were also really attractive, as I wanted to be stretched, allowing me to evolve into a strong leader. I’m also really grateful to have had the opportunity to do the Agile Project Management Qualification and to access the other graduate training we get throughout the scheme.
SCW as an employer - I enjoy working for SCW for a number of reasons. Firstly, there’s such a variety of different work and opportunities to get involved in. As I mentioned, I am involved in a few different projects, and these provide great exposure to working with different customers and groups of people, making SCW a really interesting organisation to work for. We also have regular ‘Lunch & Learn’ calls you can join to listen to a presentation about a completely different part of the organisation.
Secondly, my team is doing an excellent job of promoting togetherness and supporting one another in spite of remote working – we’ve got little Coffee & Email calls set up for 30 minutes a few mornings every week which are drop-ins and can be great to help get your day started, and we’ve also got a weekly informal team call. Wellbeing is very important at SCW, and there are a number of activities that our SCW Thrive team puts on. I really like the monthly Coffee Roulette, where you are randomly paired with someone else in the organisation and the idea is that you schedule a 20-minute call at some point during that month. I’ve met quite a lot of different people from a variety of areas at SCW already, and it is a really nice way to learn more about other areas of work within the organisation and build your network.
The graduate scheme has given me exposure to lots of competencies, and I’ve already had exposure to various parts of project management – but in particular, I’ve really built my skill set of analysis and interpretation of information. At the start of the scheme, I mentioned to my boss that I didn’t feel particularly strong in this field so she gave me little bits of work to do on this. It’s been really valuable to have this support in the areas that I need.
Looking to apply to the SCW graduate scheme? - For anyone looking for a tip about the application process, I would recommend looking up some information about SCW and the NHS currently and reflecting on how this may impact the work you will do on the graduate scheme. Although this is not necessarily required, this will not only help to make you feel more confident in the process but might help with nerves. There’s good information on the King’s Fund Website. Also, remember that practice makes perfect and think about how you’ve demonstrated SCW’s values!
By the end of the grad scheme I’m hoping to have developed into a strong, well-rounded leader and I’m excited for what’s to come! I definitely think anyone who is considering applying should go for it! APPLY NOW.
