CAREERS
Degree apprenticeships
S
o you’ve got your A-level results that you’ve worked so hard for. But what next? Do you go and spend three years studying for a
degree or do you get a foot in the door of the industry you’ve dreamed of working in for years? Well, if you have the ambition, you don’t have to choose. The degree apprenticeship is here to save the day.
What is a degree apprenticeship? A degree apprenticeship combines full-time paid work with part-time university study, offering apprentices the chance to gain a degree while undertaking on-the-job training. (And you’ll earn the equivalent of the degree qualification received by someone who has spent three years at university as a student.) It is a partnership between employers and higher education institutions, such as universities. Introduced in 2015 as an alternative to traditional apprenticeships, they take between three and six years to complete, depending on the course level. Currently, degree apprenticeships are
18
WhatLive.co.uk Spring 2018
only available in England and Wales, but applications can be made from anywhere within the UK.
How does it work? At the end of the scheme, apprentices will undergo an assessment testing both their capability in the workplace and their academic prowess. The apprenticeship programmes can be structured in two ways: either the university and employer come together to design a specific degree course, or workplaces can implement an existing degree programme to deliver the academic knowledge required by the profession. Either way, those on degree apprenticeships gain knowledge, skills and relevant work experience, valued by organisations. Because degree apprenticeships combine working with studying, apprentices have flexibility in how they split their time between the two. There is also the option of distance learning or block learning (where you do a chunk of full-time study away from your full-time work). Each scheme will have an
appropriate programme set out by the employer and the university working together – designed to provide you with the relevant skillset for the career of your choice.
What makes a degree apprenticeship different? What are the advantages? If you wish to, you can complete a sandwich degree instead, which would provide a year of work experience in industry. However, degree apprenticeships build on this model, with apprentices being employed and earning a wage from day one. Upon successful completion, you’ll gain a full bachelor’s or master’s degree, which you won’t get with a higher apprenticeship.
What about the fees? As with other apprenticeships (but unlike a standard university course), the fees that come with a degree apprenticeship are covered by the government and the company – so, no student debt! While you won’t be eligible for student loans, you will
“Those on degree apprenticeships gain knowledge, skills and relevant work experience, valued by organisations in the field”
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
