YOUNG PEOPLE CAN APPLY TO DO AN 'APPRENTICES DEGREE' IN SHAKE-UP TO FILL UK SKILLS GAP

Young people will be able to apply for apprenticeships alongside degree courses for the first time this year in a bid to boost placements. The Government says the move will put technical and vocational education on an equal footing with traditional academic qualifications.

Thousands of young people are set to benefit from a wider choice, which could help fill the UK skills gap.

Half of those who apply for undergraduate courses via the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) would consider an apprenticeship, the Department for Education (DfE) says.

But it added that not enough vacancies were being offered to meet growing demand.

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan marked National Apprenticeship Week by describing her own experience as a "golden ticket".

She said: "It gave me a unique insight into how a business operated.

"From the shop floor to the boardroom - I learnt the skills that businesses truly value and it launched my career in international business.

"I hope more people learn about the incredible opportunities available in everything from healthcare to gaming software development.

"Whatever goals you aspire to, they can be achieved through an apprenticeship, up to masters degree level."

Ms Keegan left school at 16 - the first Education Secretary to do so since Alan Johnson, who served from 2006 to 2007 under Tony Blair.

She was an apprentice at Delco Electronics, a subsidiary of General Motors on Merseyside, and was sponsored to do a business degree at Liverpool John Moores University.

The change means student choices will be in one place. Clare Marchant, chief executive of Ucas, welcomed it and said: "This will create parity with undergraduate courses."

More than 300,000 young people signed up to be an apprentice in the last academic year - an 8.6 percent increase on the year before. The average apprentice salary is £29,901, says job search site Talent.com.

''It's great learning from the experts''

Jeiya Siapno said the push at school had been to go to university but doing a degree apprenticeship has given her skills that "set me apart".

She started her five-year Level 6 training in software development at KPMG in 2019.

Jeiya, 22, from Birmingham, said she has had an "incredibly positive experience".

She said: "I really do get the best of both worlds on my apprenticeship - I'm studying for a degree, while working on the job, learning about software from industry experts."

While applying for universities Jeiya "randomly came across the vacancy for my apprenticeship online one day and decided to apply just to see. The rest is history."

I am passionate about apprenticeships and believe they offer millions the chance to progress up the ladder of opportunity.

They're not only beneficial for people of all backgrounds and ages to earn money while they build their career or retrain, but also for employers to train staff according to their needs.

That's why we have an employer-led system and to date, businesses have designed more than 650 apprenticeships to get people into the skilled roles they need to grow and innovate.

As Skills Minister, it's my job to work with employers to incentivise people to learn the skills which are crucial to keeping our economy and our country moving.

There is no doubt that many vital careers face challenges in recruiting people with the right skills and apprenticeships are the key to increasing productivity, boosting the economy and plugging these critical workforce gaps.

2023-02-06T23:46:41Z dg43tfdfdgfd