Scottish Apprenticeship Week: Nicole’s positive impact leads to award nomination

A Graduate Apprentice who studied Business Management at RGU is making huge strides forward in the financial management sector and, in recognition of this, has been nominated for a national award.

Nicole Wallace works in Edinburgh for abrdn and graduated in December 2023, having successfully completed the course which is offered by Aberdeen Business School.

The 24-year-old from Lochgelly in Fife is a finalist in the Graduate Apprentice of the Year category for the Scottish Apprenticeship Awards thanks to an impressive list of achievements.

These include saving abrdn more than £100,000 by using finance experience gained on her GA to review the firm’s intern accommodation and propose fully costed alternatives.

Nicole used her change and project management experience to implement a new process to support graduate rotations and ensure graduates were set up to deliver on day one of their placements.

She stepped in at short notice to deliver Assessment Centres for the Early Careers graduate recruitment programme and Nicole also stepped up for six months to cover a consultant role, supporting all aspects of the development of the Early Careers Development Programme.

Nicole said: “Completing a Graduate Apprenticeship through RGU has enabled me to grow in my career while putting my learnings from university into practice in the workplace. The GA programme provided me with the flexibility to balance full time working with full time studying while being able to maintain a social life – something I never thought would be possible. 

“I thoroughly enjoyed creating connections with new people from both the University and my workplace, the GA provided me with the opportunity to grow my network and learn from others. I am immensely proud to have graduated from RGU with a 2:1 degree in Business Management and look forward to the future.”

Vicky Stewart, Robert Gordon University Lecturer and Course Leader for the Graduate Apprenticeship in Business Management, said: “Nicole put a lot of time and effort into her studies and the unique nature of this Graduate Apprenticeship means she was supported to develop personally and professionally and apply her learning within abrdn. The outcomes of her dedication and creative application of learning are apparent in this nomination."

abrdn Talent Consultant Sophie Ewen said: “The skills and knowledge Nicole gained during her Graduate Apprenticeship made a real difference to the bottom line for the company and what we do as a business.

“She’s very resilient, acts on her own initiative and is always keen to come up with new ideas and try new ways to do things better.

“Apprentices bring a unique set of ideas and understanding to our business - they are good at checking and challenging what we do and they bring fresh energy.”

The winner of the Graduate Apprentice of the Year category will be revealed during Scottish Apprenticeship Week, which takes place from 4 to 8 March. Find out more about the award finalists and the event by visiting apprenticeships.scot/awards.