My initial introduction to Allsop was via work experience set up by my A-Level geography teacher, who happened to know one of the Partners in the Leeds office. I had never come across the property industry or surveying as a career choice, so went into the work experience with an open mind.

Following a brilliant fortnight in the Leeds office, shadowing various members of staff, and attending multiple viewings and inspections, I knew that I wanted a career in the property industry, and began to apply for Real Estate degrees. Whilst I did get multiple offers for uni, I wasn’t entirely convinced – mainly due to the huge financial commitment it involves. I was then introduced to the Allsop Degree Apprenticeship scheme - initially I did consider London (but wasn’t too keen on moving ‘down south’), however following an interview in the Leeds office, I was offered the job as their first Degree Apprentice, and started in September 2018.

I have now been at Allsop for 4 years, and in the last year I have transitioned onto the Graduate Scheme and am now working towards my APC.

Why did you choose property?

If I am completely honest, I’d never considered property as a choice of career, but after some investigation, and the previously mentioned work experience, I realised that it was a very appealing industry to me, and a career pathway that I wanted to embark on. I was never particularly keen on the idea of sitting behind a desk for my entire career, so part of the attractiveness was being able to be out on the road most weeks, attending viewings and inspections, and meeting new people.

Why Apprenticeship over University?

I was aware of degree apprenticeship schemes, but had never really considered it, as ‘apprenticeships’ were surrounded with some stigma – particularly from school careers departments who encouraged most pupils to go to university full time. However, the burden of student debt really put me off, and I wasn’t keen on living in student halls!

When Allsop introduced the apprenticeship scheme to me, I had no doubt that this was the correct choice. I was really drawn to the idea of studying for my undergraduate degree whilst also working full time, which over the years has allowed me to get great, valuable experience and establish my name in the northern residential investment market. Obviously, there is also a huge appeal of having your degree funded and ending up with zero student debt!   

How have you found life at Allsop so far?

The last 4 years I have spent at Allsop have flown by, and I genuinely love my job. I work in the Leeds Residential Investment team, and have now begun to oversee deals from the initial appraisal, right through to exchange and completion – allowing me to learn so much about the market, the conveyancing progress, and the wider property industry in general; I have also massively grown in confidence from someone who wouldn’t even answer the phone when I started! Professionally, experience gained and progress towards my APC in the last year has been invaluable, and I can only hope I continue to learn more in the coming years.

The social side of Allsop is fantastic, and is a real ‘perk’ of the job. I am lucky to have a fantastic cohort of Graduates, in both Leeds and London, who have now become close friends. Just a few social highlights include: team away days to Barcelona, Palma and Brighton; annual Summer and Christmas parties; attending black tie charity events; and after work drinks in the local pub!

Extra-Curricular

I have also been presented with many opportunities to expand my network and industry presence since starting at Allsop.

Firstly, I am a committee member of ‘YEP Leeds,’ a networking group for young property professionals to expand their network and attend various CPD events, and I am proud to be the only committee member to represent both graduate surveyors and apprentices. I have also been given the opportunity to attend various outreach programmes to promote Allsop, degree apprenticeships and the property industry – mostly recently at the Pathways2Property event at the University of Reading with my fellow graduates Sam and Amelia, and the UrbanPlan volunteer event at a secondary school in Leeds with our newest apprentice Jack.

Future at Allsop

As I am now in the 5th year of the degree apprenticeship, I am currently focusing on completing my dissertation and graduating. The next hurdle is then to pass my APC and become a Chartered Surveyor, which is pretty daunting, but I know the support and guidance Allsop offer me will hopefully get me through it!

Further to this, I want to continue to promote Degree Apprenticeships and how fantastic I think they are – not just for property, but for many sectors – I believe an industry representative coming into school would’ve really benefitted me and my peers when I was younger, and would be perhaps set me on this career pathway earlier. I am now arranging to attend my two old schools to chat to geography students about the industry, which I am really looking forward to.