Lukasz Oleszczak
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‘Fantastic’ experience of apprenticeship earns City of Bristol College student a promotion

A ‘great experience’ with ‘experienced’ teachers has meant Poland-born student, Lukasz Oleszczak, has secured a promotion with his employer, Taste Connection, after completing his Level 3 Management apprenticeship.

Lukasz has now encouraged others to follow in his footsteps down an apprenticeship route, saying the support he received made a real difference.

He added: “After I was promoted to a supervisor position I was very keen to develop in order to help me in my new responsibilities. The apprenticeship was the best option for me as I could work and study at the same time, gaining knowledge and experience during working hours.

“I was able to focus directly on topics based on my working environment which helped me to better understand my own company procedures. Overall, the experience was fantastic and I have learned a lot and I am very grateful that I had a fantastic teacher in Sarah Mitchell ­– she was very professional, very experienced, helpful and patient with me.

“Despite the fact English is not my first language, I had big support from Sarah, she was very hard working and in order to ensure my language skills improved.”

To support Lukasz in his journey at the College, he completed Functional Skills exams in English, maths and IT. He said the ‘pride’ his teachers took was ‘absolutely amazing’ and it helped him plug a gap in his knowledge he didn’t realise was missing from his education back in Poland.

Lukasz’s company, Taste Connection, has a strong working relationship with the College and it was a perfect match. Lukasz found the location ideal between work and home as he was able to travel between all three with ease for seminars and work.

He added: “The biggest benefit of an apprenticeship is that you gain experience, theoretical and practical knowledge at the same time. Also, by gaining more experience, you automatically become more valuable to the company you are working for which creates opportunities for future progress. The apprentice also becomes more efficient, motivated and loyal.”

Lukasz said the apprenticeship ‘helped me to grow’ at his organisation and he has now been promoted to a manager role. The promotion means he is involved in a number of projects, tasks and procedures.

He now hopes to progress further by starting another apprenticeship on the Level 5 Management course at the College which, along with other courses he is being put through by Taste Connection, he hopes will see him become a Production Manager at the company.

Lukasz is now encouraging others to look at the apprenticeship programmes the College has to offer. He said: “While you are gaining new skills, you are paid at the same time, and have the opportunity to grow within the organisation. The way the teachers engage with students is amazing and the support I have received was extraordinary. I would highly recommend apprenticeships.”  

To find out more about apprenticeships, visit our Apprenticeship page.

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