A couple of weeks ago I was running my daughter and her friend into Leicester for a long-overdue shopping trip. They were excited to be together at more than Covid restrictions had kept them apart. Last Summer my daughter left school life firmly behind and started an Apprenticeship.
Once they’d caught up on who was doing what and which shops they were going to head for, talk turned to how school and work was and my daughter’s friend asked ‘what are Apprenticeships?’
My daughter spoke enthusiastically about her workplace training and I explained that apprenticeships were employer created standards that listed the knowledge, skills and behaviours required to do a whole host of different types of jobs (approx. 600). I gave her some examples of Butchers, Managers, Teachers, Payroll, Flight Operations and a few others. I explained that Apprenticeships were available at different levels, with many options that were equivalent to degrees.
My daughter’s friend was happy doing the A’ levels that she’d chosen but starting to think about whether University was really that attractive an offer. She said to me ‘Why would people go to university to get a job they could have got 3 years before if they’d done an apprenticeship’. I explained that there are lots of jobs that absolutely require a University education but many more that don’t for which there is an Apprenticeship route. I gave the examples of the Level 5 Management Apprenticeship and then the new Level 7 Senior People Professional Apprenticeship – that is a Masters level qualification that means to achieve it an employer has really invested in the Apprentice and the learning is way more practical than writing theoretical essays. An apprentice applies their learning, whilst working and earning, building their reputation with an employer, making valuable connections and being supported throughout by a trusted Training Provider.
That evening I popped open the laptop and showed her how to search all the Standards on the Institute for Apprenticeships website. I explained how employers were funded through their levy to be able to offer those Apprenticeship Standards that suited their business so there wouldn’t be any student loan to pay back and that a Training Provider with the expertise would deliver the training to support workplace learning.
I have a sneaking suspicion that we might have a potential Human Resources Support Apprentice to enrol in 2022.
Written by: Hazel Langley