About this apprenticeship
What it involves
The Data Engineer apprenticeship trains you to design, build, and maintain the data infrastructure and pipelines that allow organisations to store, process, and analyse large volumes of data reliably. You will work with databases, cloud platforms, and automation tools to ensure data flows efficiently and accurately from source systems to analytical consumers. This Level 5 qualification leads to careers as a data engineer, platform engineer, or analytics engineer in data-driven organisations.
On the job
What you’ll learn
Database design including relational, NoSQL, and data warehouse architectures
Building and maintaining ETL/ELT data pipelines using Python, Spark, or similar tools
Cloud data platform services such as AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud
Data modelling techniques including star schema and dimensional modelling
Data quality frameworks, testing, and monitoring of pipeline health
Version control, CI/CD practices, and DataOps principles for data engineering
On the job
What you’ll do day to day
Design and build data pipelines to ingest data from multiple source systems
Transform, clean, and load data into data warehouses or data lakes
Monitor pipeline performance and investigate and fix data quality failures
Optimise SQL queries and data processing jobs for speed and cost efficiency
Collaborate with data analysts and scientists to understand data requirements
Manage version control, testing, and deployment of data engineering code
The deal
How this apprenticeship works
You earn a wage from day one. You are a paid employee, not a student. There are no tuition fees - the training is funded by your employer and the government.
About 20% is “off-the-job” training. Roughly a day a week is spent learning away from your normal duties - at a college, training provider, or online - working towards a recognised qualification.
It ends with an end-point assessment (EPA). Near the end, an independent assessor checks you can do the job to the national standard - through tests, a project, a portfolio or an interview. Pass it and you are fully qualified.
How to get there
What you need to start
Level 5 (Higher) - roughly Foundation-degree level. Usually needs Level 3 (A-levels, a T-Level, or an Advanced apprenticeship) or relevant experience.
What’s next: Can lead to a Level 6 (Degree) apprenticeship or a senior role.
Entry requirements are set by each employer and can vary - always check the specific vacancy.
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What it’s really like
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