Commissioning Degree Apprenticeship

Be outstanding in your Sellafield

Commissioning and Pre-Operations involve preparing People, Plants, and Procedures for operation. At Sellafield, this means ensuring all systems and components of a facility meet operational and safety requirements.

As a Commissioning and Pre-Operations Engineering Degree Apprentice, you will gain hands-on experience with project delivery across the Sellafield site while working towards a Foundation Degree and potentially progress to a Bachelor of Engineering.

You will learn about various project types, contributing to the life extension of operational facilities and major projects addressing the UK’s nuclear legacy. Your role will include applying industry best practices, conducting commissioning tests, and managing pre-operations activities for effective project handover.

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  • After completing your Level 5 Apprenticeship, you can pursue a Level 6 apprenticeship with an integrated Degree tailored to your pathway.

  • As part of the Commissioning and Pre-operations Team, you will:

    • Learn the project lifecycle, tools, and processes to deliver safe, timely, and on-budget projects.
    • Gain experience in design processes and compliance with engineering standards.
    • Propose and conduct equipment testing.
    • Support Pre-operations to ensure readiness at handover, including training creation, engineering/maintenance planning, and safety case development.
    • Develop practical engineering skills within a multidisciplinary team, collaborating with the supply chain to meet program goals.

  • You will undertake a 3-month induction programme based at our local off-site training facility.

    Work placements will be based on either the Sellafield site or one of our various satellite offices. Academic Learning will take place 1 day a week at our training providers off-site training facility. In addition, some pathways will undertake a Practical Engineering Operations at our local off-site training facility.

  • The Degree Apprentice Programme consists of 2 phases;

    • Level 5 ST0380 Nuclear Technician Apprenticeship
    • Level 5 Foundation Degree/ Higher National Diploma (HND) in Engineering or Science aligned to your chosen pathway

    For candidates with the potential to progress further:

    • Level 6 ST0289 Nuclear Scientist and Nuclear Engineer Apprenticeship
    • Level 6 Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering (BEng) or Science (BSc) aligned to your chosen pathway, over a further 2-year period.

    *Specific qualifications are subject to change and may be replaced with an equivalent.

  • Degree apprenticeships target A-Level students or equivalents. Entry requirements include:

    • Minimum of 5 GCSEs at Grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), including Maths, English Language, and one Science or Engineering subject.
    • At least 96 UCAS points from A-Level/T-Level, preferably in STEM subjects (Maths, Chemistry, Biology, Physics), but not mandatory.
    • Other Level 3 STEM or Vocational qualifications may be accepted.
    • If lacking A-Level Maths or higher Engineering, you must have a Grade 6 (B) in GCSE Maths.
    • Functional Skills Level 2 is equivalent to GCSE Grade 4 (C).

  • Candidates will be required to achieve appropriate security and medical clearances; these will be instigated on receiving a conditional offer of employment.

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