Has your child decided to take a different route and not go to university on a full time basis? Tell the National Apprenticeship Service about your experience. £300 voucher to be won! NOW CLOSED

[PoppyMumsnet]

Figuring out whether your DC wants to go to university or not can be a stressful period for both parents and DCs alike. If your child has decided not to go to uni full time, it’s often hard to know what other options are out there. The National Apprenticeship Service, which is part of the Department for Education, wants to hear about Mumsnetters’ experiences of finding alternatives to uni. They want to know whether you’ve heard of the different apprenticeships options and whether they’re appealing to you and your DCs.

Here’s what the National Apprenticeship Service has to say on apprenticeships:

“The government has stated that all young people must stay in some sort of education or training until at least their 18th birthday. This does not necessarily mean staying in school. Young people have a choice about how they continue in education or training post 16. One of these choices could be an apprenticeship. An apprenticeship is a real job, with real training, meaning you can earn while you learn and gain the necessary skills and professional competencies in your chosen career. They are available to anyone over the age of 16 living in England. There are different entry requirements depending on the sector and job and can last from a minimum of one year up to five years.

At any one time, there are up to 28,000 apprenticeship vacancies available online in a variety of careers and industries across England such as the likes of Rolls-Royce, BBC, ASOS, ITV, Barclays, Airbus, IBM and Google, as well as thousands of small and medium-sized businesses.”

Here is more information from the National Apprenticeships Service about apprenticeships

They also have a partnership with The Student Room which you can access here

Here are a few questions that the National Apprenticeships Service is interested in hearing your thoughts about. Please comment on the thread below.

• If your child has decided not to go to college/university, have you been able to find out what other options are out there?
• Do you know how apprenticeships work - do you know what qualifications they give and what they pay? Please tell us about your experience.
• How difficult has it been for you to find information about apprenticeships and what types of apprenticeships are available?
• Did you know that there are degree apprenticeships?
• Did you know you can become a solicitor without going to university full time?

Everyone who posts on the thread will be entered into a prize draw and one person will win a £300 voucher.

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw!

MNHQ

Standard T&Cs apply

I should add that we have been lucky as the degree apprenticeships seem to be concentrated in the field my son wants to go into. My ds2 wants to go into an entirely different field and there is nothing available to him. I am hoping that over the coming years, degree apprenticeships will be rolled out further.

My boy has just decided to be an apprentice sparky

My DCs are too young at the moment but I am fearful about their future with the cost of education and the availability of jobs. I hope that, when the time comes, they have the options available to them that they want.

I work for a company who 90 % of workforce is training apprentices. We train them in different aspects of hotel management. I actually think it's a great thing. Most of These kids had a rough time at school & dropped out or decided that education just wasn't for them. Working & earning gives them something to focus on. Because it's full time lots of them, at this point in their lives, are earning more than there friends.
A few find the apprentice wage difficult. (It is very low) but it goes up as they pass different levels of their course.
As in every part of working life it's not all plain sailing some find it hard to stay motivated/come to work/find the paperwork side of their learning difficult but they are fully supported & I haven't met anyone who has quit yet.

If your child has decided not to go to college/university, have you been able to find out what other options are out there?

No, it's been very difficult to find any genuine alternatives other than a normal job

• Do you know how apprenticeships work - do you know what qualifications they give and what they pay? Please tell us about your experience.

Not really. I know they get paid an absolute pittance. No idea what qualification they get but would assume NVQ.

• How difficult has it been for you to find information about apprenticeships and what types of apprenticeships are available?

Very difficult. I wouldn't even know where to begin looking

• Did you know that there are degree apprenticeships? no

• Did you know you can become a solicitor without going to university full time?

No and I would be extremely dubious of anyone expecting to get a career as a solicitor without uni.

I've had no guidance or advice from my DCs schools about apprenticeships, DS is in second year uni and DS2 is in year 12.

Apprenticeships are fab. I've taken two on now at work. It's given them an opportunity to train in a field and get a step on the ladder, and get paid. It's a win win as far as I'm concerned.

My son is only nine but I wouldn't hesitate encouraging him to do an apprenticeship. There are tons of apprenticeship opportunities in the town I live.

Re the solicitor thing. That is correct. I'm practice manager for a firm. You do not have to go to university full time to get qualified. Nothing dubious about it.

I really don't have a clue about apprenticeships per se. I've seen the adverts and did a bit of online research when my son didn't think he would get the grades for uni, but he did so I didn't look into it much.

Now DD hasn't got the grades in AS level to continue to A2, I think I'm going to need to find out a lot about apprenticeships in a short time! I'm just assuming that it's going to be the best path for her, given I have no idea what else she is going to do (apart from sit on her arse which seems to be her preferred choice).

University is pushed so much, with alternatives barely mentioned. DD is flat out not clever enough to go to uni, and has severe anxiety so wouldn't go anyway. Living in the rural south west, I'm not imagining that the firms mentioned in the OP will have positions available.

Unlike the UCAS system where students are guided step by step through the process, it seems that the alternatives are all but ignored by educational institutions.

- If your child has decided not to go to college/university, have you been able to find out what other options are out there?

Yes been able to, lots of options.

- Do you know how apprenticeships work - do you know what qualifications they give and what they pay? Please tell us about your experience.

I have some idea, lots of info was available. DS didn't want one so we didn't think learn details.

- How difficult has it been for you to find information about apprenticeships and what types of apprenticeships are available?

The tricky part is finding out what's in our area. I looked long enough to find out that the nearest ones in IT (the only topic I could imagine DS doing) involved 1-2hrs travel each way on a gross FT salary of £100 or so. DS might be lucky to have £50/wk left over after travel costs.

Did you know that there are degree apprenticeships?
Did you know you can become a solicitor without going to university full time?

Did not know those things. Not interested since DS joined Army & academic DD wants university. My other kids are too young but will probably get A-levels before they might think about apprenticeships.

When my son did not get the grades he needed for his chosen University course last year. I tried to get him to look at an Apprenticeship instead as I can see loads of advantages in working as you train (and avoiding building up loads of debt!). My son is interested in biology/chemistry and a local firm advertised a really interesting science/lab work apprenticeship. He decided to do re-sits instead and is heading off to University this October but my 16 year old daughter is seriously looking at IT apprenticeships instead of Uni and is finding out about degree level apprenticeships.

Our main source of information about apprenticeships has been through online sources.

If your child has decided not to go to college/university, have you been able to find out what other options are out there?

I'm in the same position as WomblingThree; have just found out that DS hasn't done well enough at AS to continue to A2, and his school have asked him to leave half way through his A level course. I'm not sure how the hell we're going to find something for September! He's always felt he wasn't Uni material, and was interested in looking at Apprenticeships, but not quite this soon. I've had a brief look at what options are out there (via the government site, and also via a website called Unifrog which the school recently signed up to, which covers Apprenticeships as well as degree courses). Unfortunately, although he's not very academic, he's also not suited to anything vocational, so there seems to be very few that would be suitable for him, and they all look scarily competitive.

• Do you know how apprenticeships work - do you know what qualifications they give and what they pay? Please tell us about your experience.

I know how traditional Apprenticeships work - we have several Apprentice electricians at work, and it is clear what qualifications they are doing, they are well supported by their college and training on the job makes perfect sense. I am a bit perturbed by some of the vague Apprenticeships I've seen advertised, as it isn't clear what qualifications they lead to, and how well they will be supported. It's all very well being "slave labour" for a while (after all, no-one pays you at Uni), and we would be happy to part-support him financially, but only if he gets something out of it. But on balance I think the concept is excellent, especially now a degree costs so much money.

• How difficult has it been for you to find information about apprenticeships and what types of apprenticeships are available?

I know where to look for them, but the whole thing is confusing, not widely known about, and unless an Apprenticeship is with a blue chip/reputable company it's hard to tell if it's worthwhile. Some of the horror stories on this thread don't reassure me. And I have to keep looking up the levels because I can never remember.

• Did you know that there are degree apprenticeships?

Yes, I did.

• Did you know you can become a solicitor without going to university full time?

Yes, and why not?

I know, @CointreauVersial, it's ridiculous. I have literally no idea where to start. DD knew she had a U in one subject as she didn't have a clue what the exam was about, but she was pretty sure she had done ok on the other 3. Nope, 2 Cs and an E and she needed 3 Cs to carry on. We were on holiday so she got the results online and the college want to know by this evening what the AS students want to do in September. As she hadn't even considered she wouldn't get the grades she has no idea. She's had no communication at all from the college and no offers of help or support. Like your son, she is neither academic nor vocational. I've looked at the apprenticeships available in our area (all 13 of them) and it's hairdressing, food service or care. That's it.

I'm at a loss basically.

My DS tried last year to get one of these apprenticeships, and after hundreds of applications, had 1 interview and zero offers. No feedback either, so I am unsure as to my opinion on them. He decided in end to stay on or sixth form and is starting college in a few weeks.

My DD is going into year 8 but is already thinking about what route she wants to take. I think it is really good to hear that there are other routes to university opening up. I think it's often too expensive for university now but degree apprenticeships would be a great way to open this up. With four children all quite close we would not be able to afford to subsidise them al during further education - good to hear there are other avenues

University is not for everyone!

DS1 may be interested in a degree apprenticeship (accounting) but even in our major city there is not much available - he is planning on doing A levels so we have a couple of years to look around.

His school push the University route for their 6th form, but he wants to be earning while he learns.

This is a bit different, but worth looking into for anyone with DCs of a practical inclination. My DS studied at South Tyneside College, something like Marine Studies. Don't remember the details, but sponsored by a Merchant Navy Company, although we helped with accommodation. Some time at college, some at sea. Lots of travel. Has led to fantastic career opportunities on land or sea. Similar courses at Southampton and Glasgow, as I remember.

• If your child has decided not to go to college/university, have you been able to find out what other options are out there?

Yes, DS isn't going to university (at least not immediately) and we've done a lot of research to find out the different options.

• Do you know how apprenticeships work - do you know what qualifications they give and what they pay? Please tell us about your experience.

Yes, we've looked into a range of apprenticeships, some of which give NVQ qualifications and also some degree apprenticeships. The pay isn't great but it's great that they can get these qualifications while working.

• How difficult has it been for you to find information about apprenticeships and what types of apprenticeships are available?

Not too difficult, there's a lot of information on Gov.uk and we've also been to the Skills Show in the past which provided useful information.

• Did you know that there are degree apprenticeships? Yes.

• Did you know you can become a solicitor without going to university full time? Yes, I have known people who have done part time degrees and who have gone through paralegal training routes.

Even though my son is quite bright and did really well in his GCSEs he decided that he didn't want to go on to college or university preferring to do an apprenticeship instead. He is nearing the end of his first year training to be a body fitter for a large national bus company. He goes away to college for a week every six weeks or so and is based in our local bus depot for the rest of the year. He's doing very well, enjoys his job and earns surprisingly good money for a 17 year old.

DD defined herself as very academic at an early age. Teen years saw her entered for early GCSEs which she didn't do well in. Consequently, she now sees herself as 'not clever enough' for university. She is currently awaiting GCSE results to see if she can do psychology at a local 6th form college, but if she fails her maths, she can't do that, even though she is sure she will do well in her GCSE psychology. I have suggested college, but she sees it as lesser than school (don't ask me why...not from home perspective). I have also suggested apprenticeships, but living up north, they are not nearly as attractive as they might be in London. She sees an apprenticeship as being o.k. for other people, but not for her. I am afraid she may be quite snobbish about them, when actually, they might be the very answer for children like her who are clever, but not geared up for academic success in the current system.

DD says she will not be going to university, so I don't know what she will do instead. Two years still to go though, so everything could change. I do think, however, that not enough information is given to some children on apprenticeships. Certainly for her school, there was little guidance other than stay on for A Levels and go to university, or get out of here because you can't get the results we want and we're not really bothered what you do. Apprenticeships never communicated to us as parents, though they may have been to dd. Who knows with teens?

We talked about this today with dd after an article in the Times newspaper. Prior to that it has been relatively difficult to get good reliable information about non-college/uni options. Also that route has become the norm now for many children, especially in our local area, so you almost feel that you've 'failed' in some way by not going to university even if it was a choice. I think getting more 'real life' stories out there of people that chose this route and how it worked for them would really help, especially for the less well known things like engineering and law etc.

My DD16 is thinking about a degree level apprentiship, seems a great way to get a degree and not have huge debts at the end of it! I imagine they will be really competitive and hard to get into.

Despite all the publicity which seeks to direct some young people away from uni iwould still say to all of them, work hard at school ,aim high and strive to do well,. Aim for university. Think about it this way. Do you really think the parents of the wealthy and the ruling classes are saying to their children,,oh you dont want to go to uni. Get an apprenticeship.

Like hell they are . They will want ,ney assume and expect their child to go to uni so why settle for anything less your YOUR child ??

TDH We're wealthy. I'm 'Oxbridge educated'. DD is doing an apprenticeship. We've always said work hard at school, aim high and strive to do well because education gives people more choices in life.

The trouble with setting university up as the only and best aim, is that if your child turns out to be not suited for university (as ours is not) or prefers another route, then they can perceive that as a failure. Which isn't really fair if they don't have it in them.

Fair comment Teen...i just perceive that there is a massive media con job going on here because essentially, too many people are going to Uni and those in the know want to return to the old days where only the elite and moneyed classes got to go to uni and the prols did manual tasks and doffed their caps.