You might be surprised at the variety of apprenticeships available to fit a broad range of cultures, ability sets, and preferences, how employers are attempting to recruit tomorrow’s workers and how to find an apprenticeship has changed. Many of the UK’s most influential organisations, such as MI5 and MI6, often provide apprenticeship programmes.
If you are in high school or college, talk to your career coach about the various apprenticeships and placements available. If you are already employed, you can still do an apprenticeship, so consult with your employer and see if any training opportunities are eligible.
Based on the existing qualification standard, various categories of apprenticeships are eligible.
Specific apprenticeship programmes will count against your UCAS grades if you want to go to university, but they can also have a different route into higher education.
However, before you begin applying to universities, you can inquire whether the career you seek necessitates a degree or whether you can gain further experience with an apprenticeship programme.
Company Website
If you have a specific organisation in mind, check their website and see if they have any apprenticeship programmes. Apprenticeships are often found in the job vacancies section on a company’s website. They will tell you how to apply and what requirements you’ll need to be accepted, if any. You’ll also find out how long the apprenticeship will last and what skills and qualifications you’ll get as a part of it.
Apprenticeships like this will also lead directly to a job at the end, so ask about this before applying or throughout the interview process.
Look at grants as well, as several companies provide them. For example, the organisation Kaplan awards accounting scholarships to school leavers from all over the United Kingdom each year. This allows students to fulfil an accountancy apprenticeship while pursuing more advanced accountancy qualifications.
Don’t give up if you don’t see any direct programmes or grants to apply for. Instead, call the business to ask if they have any schemes or similar that you may be eligible for – many people will applaud your courage and initiative in contacting them directly.
Get the grades you need to attract prospective employers
While an apprenticeship can be a viable path to higher and further education, many employers may require you to undergo specific training before you begin.
GCSEs in Maths and English are sometimes needed. But don’t be concerned if you lack those qualifications; there are many ways to achieve them. Why not engage in an adult numeracy and literacy course, for example, to help you develop the required skills?
Get Work Experience
Gaining an apprenticeship may be challenging, but if you are already familiar with the industry before applying, you would have a better chance of being accepted.
Employment experience will show you have some of the expertise you’ll need to please a boss. Speak with companies about the possibility of doing one or two-week work placements – you’ll almost certainly be unpaid, but the contacts you’ll make can be worth it. They may advise on how to find an apprenticeship.
Conduct some pre-apprenticeship preparation.
Pre-apprenticeship planning is an ideal way to prepare for an apprenticeship’s demands and will bring you into the right mindset for a full-time training job.
This pre-apprenticeship, sometimes known as a traineeship, can lead to a full apprenticeship. And you are not required to stay in one place; after your traineeship is over, you will be free to transfer to a different company or scheme.