Network Engineer Apprenticeship
Babcock International
Bordon (GU35 9JA)
Closes on Thursday 12 March 2026
Posted on 2 December 2025
Contents
Summary
If you’re passionate about technology and intrigued by how digital devices connect, our Network Engineer Apprenticeship offers the perfect foundation for your career. You’ll earn while you learn, with salary increases each year as you progress.
- Wage
-
£23,776 a year
- Training course
- Network engineer (level 4)
- Hours
-
Monday to Friday
9am to 5pm
35 hours a week
- Start date
-
Tuesday 1 September 2026
- Duration
-
3 years
- Positions available
-
2
Work
Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.
What you'll do at work
As an apprentice, you'll be part of Babcock's Skynet Service Delivery Wrap (SDW) program, which plays a crucial role in providing essential communication capabilities to the UK and NATO armed forces. The Skynet system ensures that service personnel can stay connected anytime, anywhere, in any environment on Earth. By joining this program, you won’t just acquire specialised network engineering skills - you’ll also contribute to projects that are critical to the security of the UK.
You will work our Bordon location, where our teams help to maintain and modernise the UK’s sovereign space communications. Throughout your apprenticeship, you will have the chance to rotate through different Skynet SDW Infrastructure teams, gaining valuable insights into their operations and taking on increasingly complex tasks as your experience and skills grow.
Typical tasks include:
- Troubleshooting and resolving network issues
- Providing technical support to customers and key stakeholders, addressing queries and delivering effective solutions
- Interpreting technical information and aligning it with organisational requirements and expectations
- Learning and applying safe working practices in diverse environments, including working at height and in confined spaces
Where you'll work
Oakhanger Road
Oakhanger
Bordon
GU35 9JA
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
BASINGSTOKE ITEC LIMITED
Training course
Network engineer (level 4)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- Apply tools and techniques when securely operating and testing networks.
- Install and configure network components.
- Implement tools and techniques to monitor, identify, analyse and record systems performance in line with defined specifications.
- Maintain security of the network against potential threats.
- Apply tools and or techniques to gather information to troubleshoot issues and or isolate, repair or escalate faults.
- Communicate outcomes of tasks and record actions in line with organisational procedures.
- Upgrade, apply and test components to systems configurations ensuring that the system meets the organisation’s requirements and minimises downtime.
- Interpret information and or specifications received from a manager, customer or technical specialist and accurately implement the defined requirements.
- Implement techniques to optimise systems or component performance in line with defined specifications.
- Apply the required level of responsibility when organising and prioritising work tasks, clients’ or stakeholders’ requests in line with SLAs and organisation processes.
- Explain their job role within the business context to stakeholders to enable a clear understanding on both sides of what their remit is and convey technical constraints.
- Operate securely, and apply process, policies and legislation within their business responsibilities.
- Configure and maintain network addressing in line with customer requirements.
- Ensure compliance of network engineering outputs with change management processes including Secure Access Service Edge SASE or Zero-trust networking .
- Apply tools and techniques when securely operating and testing networks.
- Install and configure network components.
- Implement tools and techniques to monitor, identify, analyse and record systems performance in line with defined specifications.
- Maintain security of the network against potential threats.
- Apply tools and or techniques to gather information to troubleshoot issues and or isolate, repair or escalate faults.
- Communicate outcomes of tasks and record actions in line with organisational procedures.
- Upgrade, apply and test components to systems configurations ensuring that the system meets the organisation’s requirements and minimises downtime.
- Interpret information and or specifications received from a manager, customer or technical specialist and accurately implement the defined requirements.
- Implement techniques to optimise systems or component performance in line with defined specifications.
- Apply the required level of responsibility when organising and prioritising work tasks, clients’ or stakeholders’ requests in line with SLAs and organisation processes.
- Explain their job role within the business context to stakeholders to enable a clear understanding on both sides of what their remit is and convey technical constraints.
- Operate securely, and apply process, policies and legislation within their business responsibilities.
- Configure and maintain network addressing in line with customer requirements.
- Ensure compliance of network engineering outputs with change management processes including Secure Access Service Edge SASE or Zero-trust networking .
Training schedule
During your apprenticeship, you will study and learn in the role of a Network Engineer.
The course includes a wide range of specialist modules designed to provide you with a strong theoretical foundation for your future career.
You will also develop practical skills, including:
- Installing, configuring, and testing network components or devices (both physical and virtual)
- Collecting and analysing data to monitor network performance.
- Improving and maintaining network systems or services to meet set standards
- Identifying and fixing network issues to restore operations, escalating issues if needed
- Upgrading physical and virtual network systems
- Interpreting written requirements and technical documents to deliver network systems and services effectively
- Keeping accurate records in line with organisational policies
Your apprenticeship will culminate in an End Point Assessment (EPA), where an independent assessor will evaluate your performance against the Knowledge, Skills, and Behaviours (KSBs) defined in the occupational standard. This final assessment allows you to demonstrate the expertise you have gained during the programme.
Requirements
Essential qualifications
GCSE in:
- Any subject (grade 4(C) and above)
- Any subject (grade 4(C) and above)
- English (grade 4(C) and above)
- Maths (grade 4(C) and above)
- Science (grade 4(C) and above)
Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.
Skills
- Communication skills
- Attention to detail
- Team working
Other requirements
Many of our apprenticeship programmes are subject to Security Clearance and Trade Control restrictions which mean that your place of birth, nationality, citizenship, or residency you hold or have held may impact which programmes you are eligible for. For this programme, you must be able to achieve Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) and Security Check (SC) clearance.
Further details are available at United Kingdom Security Vetting: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels
About this employer
Babcock is an international defence company providing support and product solutions to enhance our customers’ defence capabilities and critical assets. We provide through-life technical and engineering support for our customers’ assets, delivering improvements in performance, availability and programme cost. Our c27,700 employees deliver these critical services to defence and civil customers, including engineering support to naval, land, air and nuclear operations, frontline support, specialist training and asset management. We also design and manufacture a range of defence and civil specialist equipment, from naval ship and weapons handling systems to liquid gas handling systems. We also provide integrated, technology-enabled solutions to our defence customers in areas such as secure communications, electronic warfare and air defence.
https://earlycareers.babcockinternational.com/apprenticeships/ (opens in new tab)
Company benefits
Fully funded qualification
Personal development training and opportunities
Minimum 28 days holiday allowance including bank holidays
Competitive pension scheme
Employee share scheme
Flexible benefits including cycle2work scheme
Disability Confident
A fair proportion of interviews for this apprenticeship will be offered to applicants with a disability or long-term health condition. This includes non-visible disabilities and conditions.
You can choose to be considered for an interview under the Disability Confident scheme. You’ll need to meet the essential requirements to be considered for an interview.
After this apprenticeship
- The space industry is on a remarkable growth trajectory, with its global value projected to triple by 2035
- As part of this booming sector, the skills and experience you’ll develop in network cabling will remain in high demand for years to come
- Completing the apprenticeship programme is just the start of an exciting career journey with us. We are dedicated to your continued professional growth, offering ongoing development opportunities at our Bordon site
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
BASINGSTOKE ITEC LIMITED
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000003031.
Apply now
Closes on Thursday 12 March 2026
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