Degree Apprentice Civil Engineer

OXFORD

Application deadline: 7th January 2025

Start date: Monday 1^st September 2025

About Milestone Infrastructure

Milestone Infrastructure is the UK’s leading highways maintenance provider. Looking after 48000 km of roads, 300,000 lighting assets and 32,000 km of footways, always with a view to ensuring that all works are carried out as sustainably as possible and with minimal impact to local communities. Milestone Infrastructure sits within M Group Services Transport Division, positioned to support transport clients across the UK. As a business, people are at the heart of everything we do, whether they are our people, our clients, or the communities they serve. We are committed to behaving with integrity and in a sustainable manner, being mindful to the needs of our communities and the environment.

As a growing business we are delighted to offer a number of Civil Engineering Degree Apprenticeships across our business. One of the roles we are looking to recruit is for our Oxfordshire Highways team.  This is an exciting opportunity to join a successful team looking to build on its award winning reputation for safety, innovation, decarbonisation and social value.

About the role

You’ll be part of an experienced team playing an important role in maintaining and improving the county’s highway infrastructure – you could be working on some of the county’s many historic bridges; implementing active travel improvements to improve facilities for cyclists and pedestrians; or working on projects trialling innovative surfacing materials.  As part of our established apprenticeship programme you will rotate around different teams within the contract.  Starting in our design team, you’ll learn core skills such as Autocad and many aspects of highway and bridge design.  You will work in our office in the heart of the vibrant city of Oxford, in a hybrid working environment – a combination of home/office/site based work. On subsequent rotations you will also get the opportunity to work on site with our construction team and within our depot operations teams to get practical first-hand experience of construction and highway maintenance.  This will allow you to gain a broad practical experience and knowledge early in your career for you to build on. 

With the support of your work-based mentor, your responsibilities will increase as your skills and technical knowledge develop. We were awarded ‘Apprenticeship Employer of the Year’ at the 2024 Oxfordshire Apprenticeship Awards, and have an enthusiastic and supportive group of apprentices within the contract to provide excellent peer support throughout your apprenticeship.

Training and Qualifications

• You will complete the Level 6 BEng Civil Engineering degree apprenticeship at Coventry University
• You will work towards your professional accreditation with the Institution of Civil Engineers
• You will experience a rotational training programme across the business
• You will have specific operational and professional additional training, gaining professional cards, certificates as appropriate to the role
• You will have a mentor or delegated engineer and be expected to gain your ICE professional accreditation

What is the expected career progression after this apprenticeship? 

As a Milestone Degree Apprentice you will be recruited on a permanent contract and after completing your apprenticeship and professional accreditation with the ICE, becoming an Incorporated Engineer, you will have the knowledge, experience and professional membership to progress and be rewarded with a great career at Milestone. There will also be the opportunity to work towards chartered engineer (CEng) status if that is your chosen career path with us. 

Key Duties & Responsibilities: 

• Rotate across several of our design, construction and operations teams within our partnership contract delivering highways and structures maintenance projects.
• Work closely with teams across the contract to help plan and implement these schemes from ‘start to finish’ within budget and to programme, and in compliance with quality, safety and environmental objectives.
• Assist in the planning and completion of site visits, surveys and investigations.
• Help prepare scheme designs, drawings and documents using a range of design software.
• Review how innovations can be incorporated into our projects/operations to work towards our carbon reduction plan.
• Assist in supervising the construction of our highways/structures projects.
• When placed with our bridges team, help undertake inspections and structural assessments to help maintain the safety of the county’s bridges.
• When placed with our operations team, help to deliver our depot maintenance activities safely and efficiently, working with the team to implement innovations.
• Work towards successful completion of your degree apprenticeship, both in the academic modules, as well as recording of ‘on-the-job’ experience and ‘off-the-job’ development activities to work towards your End Point Assessment.
• Actively participate in the company apprentice development programme activities.  

  Skills and Experience

• Good problem-solving skills and initiative.
• Proficient IT skills including MS Office software.
• Some experience of AutoCAD or similar CAD software would be an advantage.
• Good time management and organisational skills.
• Driving licence desirable.

An offer of employment for this role will be subject to a satisfactory DBS Check. Such checks will be requested once a conditional offer of employment has been made.  

At Milestone we embrace diversity, opening a rich potential for new ways of thinking and helping us to build successful and winning teams. We would like you to perform at your best at every stage of our recruitment process; and as a Disability Confident employer, if you require any adjustments that would assist you throughout your application, please contact us at [email protected] or inform the recruitment manager in the first instance and we will be pleased to offer support.

This is an advert for our job vacancy, and therefore may not be inclusive of all assigned duties, responsibilities, or aspects of the role described, and may be amended at any time at the sole discretion of Milestone. The closing date for this vacancy may be subject to change any time at the sole discretion of the Business.