Systems Engineer

You’ll help solve some of the most complex engineering challenges on a systems engineer apprenticeship course.

Systems engineering is a multidisciplinary engineering and engineering management profession focusing on designing and managing complex systems. Systems engineers may work in any sector that needs highly engineered systems, such as transportation, telecommunications, and infrastructure. 

Daily, you will interact with project managers, business development and/or sales representatives. In addition, you will assemble and manage teams of professionals and subject experts in specific technical or scientific areas. 

You’ll often work in a customer-facing role, ensuring that the system meets the needs and preferences of customers and users, and you’ll be in charge of technical and commercial communication.

Although site visits may be needed during the installation of planned systems, most of the work is done in the office.

You will get a master’s degree in systems engineering upon graduation.

What you’ll learn

On an systems engineer apprenticeship course, you’ll learn:

• Select an appropriate lifecycle for a system or portion of a system, then describe its lifecycle stages and relationships.
• Define the environment of a system from several viewpoints, such as system boundaries and external interfaces.
• Employ methods for analysing stakeholder needs to create high-quality, consistent requirements with acceptance criteria that can be handled throughout system development.
• Make a physical, mathematical, or logical representation of a system object, event, or process.
• Define the system architecture and derived needs to offer an implementable solution that enables a balanced and optimum result that considers all stakeholder requirements at all lifecycle stages.
• Assemble a collection of system components and aggregate them into the finished system, product, or service by testing interfaces, managing data flow, implementing control mechanisms, and ensuring that pieces and aggregates work as expected.
• Define verification methods (including tests) for obtaining objective evidence that a system or system element satisfies the specified requirements and characteristics.
• Provide objective evidence that the operating system fulfils the needs and expectations of stakeholders and its business or mission objectives.
• Use the most appropriate media and techniques to communicate with all project stakeholders, such as written and oral presentations.
• Integrate a system into its operational environment, including the provision of support services (e.g. specification of site preparation, training, logistics, etc.)
• Initiate design change suggestions in response to system failure or degradation.
• Create and keep track of a project management plan that includes a task breakdown structure, scheduling, and risk management.
• Balance project scope, time, money, risk, and resources to maximise product or service quality and return on investment.
• Control and manage system components and configuration throughout the project or program’s life cycle to ensure overall design coherence is verifiable.
• Plan, implement, and maintain control over information storage and delivery to stakeholders.
• Identify thoughts and ideas from different sciences, technologies, and engineering disciplines that may be helpful to the project solution.
• Separate discipline technology and work with specialists to develop discipline-specific requirements.

Entry requirements

You’ll usually need:

• A level 6 STEM qualification and two years of relevant experience; a level 5 STEM qualification and five years of relevant experience; or a level 3 or 4 STEM qualification and 10 years of relevant experience.
• Apprentices without level 2 English and maths will need to achieve this before taking the end-point assessment.

Assessment methods

The End Point Assessment comprises two distinct assessment methods: 

• Project report, presentation and questioning 
• Professional discussion, underpinned by a portfolio of evidence 

Duration, level, subjects and potential salary upon completion

Apprenticeship standard

More information about the Level 7 Systems Engineer Apprenticeship standard can be found here.

Apprenticeship end point assessment

For more information about the End Point Assessment Process, please read the Institute of Apprenticeships’ information page.