A Tarmac apprentice has paved the way to chartered success after graduating with First Class honours at the University of Wolverhampton.
Jake Cartwright, 25 from Sedgley in the Black Country, studied for a Quantity Surveying Degree Apprenticeship which was funded by his employer, Tarmac the UK’s leading sustainable building materials and construction solutions business.
Through his sheer determination and hard work, Jake is now a fully qualified Quantity Surveyor at Tarmac after studying part-time for the three-year Degree Apprenticeship whilst working towards becoming a Chartered Member of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), recently passing his Assessment of Professional Competence (APC).
The APC ensures that candidates are competent and meet the high standards of professionalism required to become a chartered surveyor – proving competency in a mix of technical and professional practice, and interpersonal, business and management skills.
Jake did well in his GCSEs but wasn’t sure what career he wanted to pursue, so he followed in his dad’s and grandad’s footsteps by moving into the construction industry. He applied for an Apprenticeship as an Estimator with Tarmac before transferring to the Quantity Surveyor role.
He said: “It’s only through the opportunities offered to me at Tarmac that have allowed me to study for a degree. I really enjoyed studying and love learning about something I’m involved with on a day-to-day basis so it was an ideal progression path for me. I can honestly say I learned something every day that I could relate to my work.
“The skills, the lessons, the teachers and the contacts you make with other students and people you meet all add significantly to that learning.
“I want to progress in my career as high and as far as I can, taking other opportunities if they become available and furthering my knowledge. I’m going to grab opportunities with both hands and I aspire to progress further within Tarmac. They have been so supportive throughout my career to date, they have allowed me to organically grow and choose my own career path – that’s invaluable. I feel very valued by the company and now, with my qualifications, I can give something back to them.”
Jake’s day job involves him undertaking valuations on site, talking to clients, agreeing values of accounts, new works pricing, and looking at contracts amongst other things.
Darren Bird, National Manager for Tarmac, said: “Apprenticeships are very important to the company. I also started my career as an Apprentice at the University of Wolverhampton so I know first-hand how far that can take you.
“You really can’t beat learning while you’re earning and that’s very true for Quantity Surveying. Construction is so hands-on and you learn a lot from other colleagues. You can’t get enough knowledge from being on-site and coupled with the learning in the classroom, the two really work together. Tarmac really values people and is moving towards more Apprenticeships, it’s one of our core values, so it’s wonderful to see Jake’s progression and success.”
Richard Watson, Senior Area Quantity Surveyor for Tarmac in the West Midlands, said: “I didn’t know what I wanted to do when I was 16 but was looking for a job where I could use my brain but also something that was split evenly between being in the office and being outdoors – I didn’t want to be behind a desk 9 to 5. Quantity Surveying offers the ability to split your week between site and office, it’s multi-disciplinary and it opens other doors within the construction industry.
“Jake is an amazing success story for Tarmac. He’s now fully qualified and he’s made that transition from academic learning to applying that knowledge to the work he’s doing and he’s embraced the whole process really well. Degree Apprenticeships offer a smooth transition with the balance between learning and work and the graduate programme allows employees to hit the ground running.”
Tarmac Contracting operates the largest highway maintenance and road surfacing business in the UK, constructing and surfacing over 5,000 miles of road every year and maintaining over 22,000km of highway.
Jake graduated in 2020.
For more information visit the Tarmac careers website.
