Apprenticeships as a broad church
In my previous #ThinkBIG articles, I have discussed the importance of defining apprenticeships - what is it that we are promoting, and why.
One benefit of completing an apprenticeship by non-linear means is that I have been able to form perspectives on the current state of the art, and how we can improve in the future.
However, it is also crucial to discuss who we are doing this for. Whilst I have written about ideas for expanding the pool of apprenticeships, such as by expanding the scope of promotion to?provide nationwide places with local ones,?I have not mentioned the approach that we should take for each type of prospective apprentice that we meet.
We should start by acknowledging that an apprenticeship is arguably a broad church. Borrowing from its ecclesiastical sense, this phrase means that its community is composed of a diverse range of opinions and backgrounds. Specifically to apprenticeships, this diversity encompasses differences in factors including:
My aim is to seek to define the types of people we could promote, why we should do so, and how to engage with them. This is based on my personal experience, and I believe that by this is integral to the creation of an apprenticeship?Centre of Excellence.
Apprenticeships are available to anyone, at any age. With this in mind, identifying the best candidates should not be limited just to those of school leaving age. There are those who will be older, whose motivations will be distinct enough to list separately.
School leavers
These are candidates who have recently, or are in the process, of leaving sixth form or college. They are normally those who have left in the year that they turn 18, but this can be earlier - some schemes are available to those between 16 and 18, which would suit those who would not have benefitted from the education system as it currently exists.
My belief is that we should do more to promote to sixth forms, as there is an assumption that students will progress onto university. From my own experience, I remember that careers advice at sixth form was essentially to ask which university we were going to. Earlier at school, my perception was that careers advice was used as a stick to motivate us to stay in school past secondary.
Academically bright
We should consider people who are academically bright. This can be indicated by exams, but is not necessarily always true. However, such people would be valuable due to their intelligence and breadth of knowledge. Apprenticeships provide a means of applying academic knowledge in a practical setting, as well as practical knowledge to an academic setting. They also open up further career and education opportunities.
Practically-oriented
Conversely, those who are practically-oriented should also be sought after. This is because apprenticeships allow for apprentices to make immediate and meaningful changes to the world. Many school leavers realise that, whilst they are academically capable, they learn best by doing - I was one such school leaver, back in 2015.?
For degree apprenticeships, I believe that some talent and passion in both practical and academic settings is ideal - in terms of learning styles, there is no zero-sum game.
People who still want to learn, but don't like school
School is not simply an academic environment - there are social and cultural rules that operate within. It should be acknowledged that, whilst schools try to adapt to the complete gamut of studentship, there will always be students that do not get along. Blame is not necessarily easy to delineate, but we should promote apprenticeships to those who are eager to learn. This is because apprenticeship offers an alternative paradigm to learning that is more personal and likely to be more aligned with the candidates' learning style.
People whose brightness is not reflected in grades
As apprentice promoters, we should seek to find the brightest people for apprenticeship positions. However, this does not necessarily mean people who get the best grades. There are qualities that are not captured, such as sociability, dedication and kindness. Even when considering knowledge and learning, brightness may not be reflected in grades due to the constraints of the examination system or the siloed nature of subjects.
Interdisciplinary thinkers
Interdisciplinarity is a valuable skill for anyone, but especially for apprentices. This is because there is the expectation of being able to work with multiple people and rotate within different areas of their organisation. It is also essential as apprentices can bring in fresh new perspectives from a range of areas - this is possible, as apprenticeships do not require any prior experience.
People pressured into full-time university
Because of admissions targets, many people are pressured into full-time university when it does not suit them. This not only includes on a permanent basis, but also that students are pressured to go even when the timing does not work for them at that moment. A large part of this may be down to a fear of loneliness arising from epistemic uncertainty, but we should advocate for greater visibility of options to those who may automatically transition into a full-time experience from which they would not benefit.
Not limited to school system
Apprenticeship promotion should not just be limited to solely one school system, whether state or private. The brightest candidates should be taken on, wherever they come from. The culture of apprenticeships must encourage social mobility, and must be an aspiration for anyone regardless of background.
People unsure of their future
Apprenticeships are ideally suited to school leavers who have not yet formed an idea of their future. This is because they offer experience in both university education and professional employment - they can be qualified alongside their full-time university peers, whilst gaining valuable career insights. From this, they can form an informed opinion of their future and can pursue professional and academic interests as they see fit.
People who know their future
Somewhat paradoxically, apprenticeships are also beneficial for those who know what they wish to do in the future. This is because they are a deep-dive into a relevant industry and a domain of knowledge, by which the apprentice can gain an excellent start to their career in their chosen field. I would argue that we should encourage a more diverse range of employers to consider apprenticing.
People who take part in extra-curricular activities
This type of school leaver has demonstrated a commitment to activities beyond what is explicitly required at school. This is transferrable, as candidates will be more keen to complete activities to promote apprenticeships and volunteer within their communities. I believe that apprentices not only have a key economic function, but play an important role in the communities that they serve.
To be avoided
When considering promotion, we should also consider cases where people would not benefit from doing an apprenticeship.
No interest in studying
An apprenticeship combines education and employment, such that it is more than the sum of these parts. In practice, education is about 50% of an apprenticeship - whilst 20% of a working week is allocated to OTJ training, the module expectations exceed this. More fundamentally, pure employment should be promoted to those who have expressly rejected further studying or those who do not want to complete a degree (when considering degree apprentices).
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"That's X, I'm doing Y"
This is the inverse of an interdisciplinary thinker - someone who prefers to silo themselves to a narrow domain. Whilst it is important to specialise in a particular domain, interest in other domains is arguably still required. This is especially relevant for apprentices, who will work in teams from a range of disciplines and rotate across many business functions.
Post-18
These encompass everyone who is 18 or above, and has left full-time education. It is a more diverse group than school leavers, as it encompasses those of every stage of employment and education. However, apprenticeships should still be promoted to them.
"If I were my child's age, I would do this"
The above quotation highlights the importance of identifying those who are post-18 in our promotion efforts. This paraphrase is a misconception, predicated on the idea that apprenticeships are only available to school leavers.
Career change
For anyone looking to change their careers, apprenticeships are a valuable means of getting the experience required to make informed decisions about whether a career change would be suitable. They also require no experience to complete, and organisations and qualifiers will benefit from perspectives previously external to their expertise.
Qualifications
Those seeking qualifications would benefit from apprenticeships. At the end of an apprenticeship, the apprentice will receive a degree and the certified completion of an end-point assessment (EPA). By virtue of these qualifications, apprenticeships also offer opportunities for further qualification afterwards.
Desire to study
Apprenticeships offer a cost-effective means of studying, combined with opportunities to apply this study in a practical setting. They are also rigorous in this regard, due to the breadth of high-quality universities and other training providers.
Upskilling
When considering development within the same career, apprenticeships are an effective means of learning. They are more effective than other training programmes as they are hands-on, and give more leniency for mistakes (as these are a great to learn from). I am an example of someone who is completing an apprenticeship by an upskilling programme, and it is great as I can integrate real project work with academic work more meaningfully.
Climbing the careers ladder
As many here will corroborate, completing an apprenticeship is great for climbing the career ladder. I would argue that it is the best first rung, as the apprentice starts from no experience and progresses to professional and academic proficiency.
Climbing the academic ladder
My view is that, because apprentices combine both education and employment, apprenticeships should also be of interest to those looking to climb the academic ladder. Apprentices are able to gain academic qualifications, up to a Master's level. For those interested in pursuing doctorate-level education, an apprenticeship is a means of gaining preceding degrees that saves money. It would also provide a practical context and experience that will inform higher-level study and research.
Desire to get the university experience
Universities who deliver the academic training for apprenticeships offer all benefits also experienced by full-time students, such as student union membership and discounts. This means that apprentices can gain the experiences of attending freshers' events and socialising with full-time students.?
Cultural barriers currently exist between full-time students and apprentices, and I believe that we could do more to remove them. That said, promoting to those who would like the university experience may result in their contribution to work in removing these barriers.
People who want to make a difference
I believe that apprenticeships are a force for social good, including beyond individual and organisational scopes. This is because the work of apprentices has a positive real-world impact. With this in mind, we should seek out candidates who wish to make a difference to the lives of themselves and others.
Thought Leaders
Part of my purpose in writing this series of articles to contribute to the ways in which we think about how apprentices are currently implemented, and how they can improve. I also discuss why we work as we do, and what new ideas would work within the domain. My contributions have been informed by my own personal experience, and by my own creativity - I believe that lived experience is essential for contributing to the best implementation of apprenticeships, both in theory and practice.
People who like a challenge
Apprenticeships are hard. But they are very rewarding. The difficulty lies in balancing, and bringing the best to, the following:
To be avoided
Similarly to school leavers, I will briefly discuss cases where the type of person should be avoided with respect to apprentice promotion.
Just a foot-in-the-door
Though there is nothing wrong with this in combination with other factors and motivations, this motivation in isolation should be avoided. This should be considered within the context of a careers ladder. In my experience, some have sought apprenticeships as the final rung of the ladder rather than as the first. Apprentices must demonstrate an eagerness for continuous development, as manifested in the requirement to complete a degree to their highest possible standard.
Just another form of corporate training
Apprenticeships are not just another form of corporate training, due to the rigour and commitment expected of each candidate.
The following are just my ideas, from this moment in time. My hope is that this article contributes to a wider discourse of apprentice promotion.