Starting the apprenticeship

I hope you’re all now settling in to your new roles!

We’re gonna run through End-point Assessment (EPA) and what support we’ll offer throughout the apprenticeship

EPA

The apprenticeship is assessed in two ways:

  • Project (“Work-based project with questioning”)
  • Portfolio (“Professional discussion underpinned by portfolio”)

You’ll work on your portfolio throughout the apprenticeship

The project is built and documented after passing through EPA Gateway

EPA Gateway can be entered 12 months from starting the apprenticeship

For your cohort, this is from 11 January 2024

When you enter EPA gateway we must submit:

  • a 500-word project summary
  • your portfolio
  • Evidence of Level 2 English
  • Evidence of Level 2 Maths
  • Sign-off from your employer

You can only enter the Gateway period when these are ready

Portfolio

Your portfolio is not directly assessed.

It is used as the basis for the “professional discussion”, which determines 50% of your grade.

You’ll write up evidence of what you’ve been working on as you go through the apprenticeship

Your evidence relates to a set of knowledge, skills and behaviours set out in the apprenticeship standard

fac-standard

There’s no template for documentation

Use Google Doc’s, and we can give feedback

You’ll put together a mapping document which lists the KSBs and where you feel you’ve met them in your portfolio evidence

Evidence is documentation which:

  1. Summarises a work project
  2. Describes all the ways you met the required knowledge, skills & behaviours
  3. Includes code samples, screenshots of plans/issues/stories, architecture diagrams etc

Additional guidance

Focus on WHAT you did and HOW you did it.

WHO is important too - but your assessor will be looking to hear what you did, so always use I, me, my and avoid we, us, our.

Also consider, WHY you are making the technical decisions that you are.

  • WHAT
  • HOW
  • WITH WHOM
  • WHY

Put together a narrative of what you did on the project, and use supporting evidence.

Mapping to KSBs comes after documenting, and in a separate document.

Spend 30 - 60 minutes each week working on your portfolio

Continued Learning

From 15:00 – 18:00 each Tuesday, we’ll facilitate additional learning time

This can be online or in person at Space4

Work on your portfolio and get feedback from others

Work on side projects and learn new technologies

Final project

The aim of the project is to research and develop a software solution to meet a specification provided by a customer or other stakeholder.

The project should:

  • meet the needs of your employer
  • be relevant to your role
  • demonstrate the required knowledge, skills & behaviours

The project is submitted in the form of a 4,500 word report.

It has a set structure with sections for each part of the software development lifecycle.

The project is 9 weeks in length

Roughly, 7 weeks of coding and 2 of reporting

Appendices do not count towards the word count

The report, and the questioning will inform your grade

The project can be begun after submitting the portfolio, and only after 12 months on the apprenticeship

Tripartite reviews

Employer, apprentice and training provider

Every 4 months

Check in on apprenticeship progress

Questions