A recent announcement from the Department for Education promised “radical skills reforms” and focused the government’s sights on developing the “next generation” of home-grown talent.
It included eye-catching offerings to sectors in need of rejuvenation such as construction and healthcare – and a refocusing of funding away from older learners on level 7 apprenticeships. This is significant as, although the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) has fallen slightly of late, ONS statistics still record half a million economically inactive young people in the UK.
The revised strategy points to purposeful investment in the country’s youth, which should encourage further green shoots of economic recovery. For a young generation constrained by coronavirus restrictions and economic stagnation, securing their future will be vital to economic prosperity.
Given this shift in government narrative, we wanted to explore how age impacts apprentices’ learning experiences.
Does age make a difference?
Our research is based on experiences of the Chartered Management Degree Apprenticeship, a cornerstone of skills development in leadership and management, where employed apprentices learn both at work, and with a higher education institution for one day a week. Our data includes interviews with both apprentices and their line managers supporting their learning in the workplace.
Our findings show very different approaches to ownership of learning depending on prior workplace experience. While apprenticeship alumni acknowledge the benefits of a degree apprenticeship programme and its worth to them and their careers, we found distinct differences in the way that learners connect with their studies and the amount of support they require.
Weighing up apprenticeships as an alternative option to traditional university study is now well-trodden ground for young people, their families, and careers advisers in schools and colleges. We found, however, that starting an apprenticeship straight out of school presents unique challenges for younger learners.
Prior research has shown that older workers have also benefited from apprenticeship initiatives and parity of opportunity. These learners – that we term “upskillers” – have typically been mature learners requiring a degree to progress with their existing employers. Our research shows that upskillers, in contrast to younger apprentices, lean into the challenges of degree apprenticeships, bolstered by the personal agency and independence that experience brings.
Straight from school?
We found much positivity amongst younger learners undertaking degree apprenticeships as an alternative to enrolling in a traditional degree. For them, having “a job secured” provided a strong rationale for the apprenticeship route, with individuals rating the opportunity to gain experience at such a young age. They noted that it was “very, very, beneficial”, and emphasised that “campus is not the only way to start your career”.
However, one young alum noted the programme was “not an easy ask”, going on to comment:
If you put in all the work, and you’re inclined to really work hard at age 18, 19, you’ll reap the rewards… [yet] once you package the entire full picture of a young person’s life and then you’re asking for this on top… it becomes a tough ask.
Others highlighted downsides and stresses of starting an apprenticeship straight from school, rather than after at least a brief experience of working life:
You’d need at least a year before doing it… you need that context… you don’t even know what a business is, what it entails, how it runs… you don’t know the real-life workings.
Employer respondents could also see the benefit of apprentices having at least some work experience and organisational understanding before commencing an apprenticeship. They argued that apprentices needed a “baseline of knowledge” to be able to “give it your all”, in terms of “managing people [and] managing situations”.
Older dogs, new tricks?
Young people’s experiences contrasted with work-experienced apprentices who took opportunities with both hands, including evaluating the pros and cons of different universities and the qualification on offer. One older apprentice talked about the freedom to “go and have a look to see what else I could find” when the existing workplace scheme recommended by his employer didn’t meet his needs. The travelling nature of his job meant he was keen to do his degree apprenticeship remotely, rather than having to spend “time on campus every week”.
Reliance on programme structure and planning was also less important for more mature learners. Two took time to reflect on their ability to be proactive in managing their learning: “I have to negotiate with the team… and plan my own time”. Another spoke of having both organisational understanding and skill available to choose their own final year project, ensuring it was relevant and useful to both him and his organisation. This made the qualification more valuable than having someone else direct their study.
Wonkhe analysis has noted that older degree apprentices are more likely to complete their studies. This fits with the sentiment of seizing a chance later in life in line with one of our upskillers commenting that “the older you are… you’ll just get it done, whatever.”
Horses for courses
If funding switches to younger people, providers will need to call on their expertise to support changing learner demographics if they are to retain high completion rates.
What works in one situation might not be right for another. If “national renewal” is to be achieved through developing young talent, implementation must account for the unique needs of young apprentices.
We hope and believe however that – despite the myriad challenges of national economic renewal – continued collaboration between the government, higher education institutions, and business will enable us to find a productive way forward within the degree apprenticeship arena.
