Customer Service Specialist

Outline

The typical route of a Customer Service Specialist is through sales, marketing and procurement. Becoming a Customer Service Specialist is about being professional, and providing high quality customer support within all sectors and organisation types. Your actions influence the customer experience. You are an advocate of customer service, who acts as a referral point for dealing with more complex or technical customer requests, complaints, and queries. You are often an escalation point for complicated or ongoing customer problems.

As an expert in your organisation’s products and/or services, you share knowledge with your wider team and colleagues. You gather and analyse data and customer information that influences change and improvements in service. You will utilise both organisational and generic IT systems to carry out your role, with an awareness of other digital technologies. This could be in many types of environments, including contact centres, retail, webchat, the service industry or any customer service point.

Assessment

It typically takes 15 months to complete your apprenticeship, but this will vary depending on your experience and working pattern.

You will be allocated a Trainer Assessor, who will support you throughout the apprenticeship with regular monthly sessions. This is flexible to your requirements, however, contact is available and encouraged outside of this time so each apprentice receives the help they need. Trainer Assessors make good use of digital platforms to support this.

Workshops are available for groups and can be managed with employers at enrolment.

Practical Period

• New knowledge, skills and behaviours’ are delivered and assessed by your Trainer Assessor with the support of your employer
• 20% off the job training is a mandatory requirement for all apprenticeship standards
• You will complete a Level 2 in maths and English, if applicable

Gateway

The gateway is the opportunity for the provider and employer to agree whether the apprentice is ready and ready to take their end point assessment (EPA).

End Point Assessment

The end point assessment is synoptic and takes place at the end of the apprentice’s learning and development. The requirement is that the end point assessment is completed within three months from the start of the end point assessment period. The end point assessment is made up of the following components:

• A practical observation in the workplace
• A work-based project, supported by an interview
• A professional discussion supported by portfolio evidence

Entry Requirements

Your organisation will have their own entry requirements, and this will be identified by completing both a job and skills analysis.

All apprentices must achieve a Level 2 in maths and English before the end point assessment, or provide a certificate of prior achievement which is equivalent.

* Fees

Don’t let the cost of studying put you off – most of our students study for FREE, and those who don’t qualify for funding are very often eligible for an Advanced Learner Loan.

Eligibility depends on both the course you have chosen to study and your individual circumstances.

Apply

To add a course to your application, click 'Apply', once you have selected all your courses, click 'My Applications' top right, to continue the application process.