A degree apprenticeship is a combination between having a regular job and attending university. For me, this works out as 25% of my time (one week every month) being spent in lectures and the rest in my regular job. Whilst only being a part-time course, due to your work experience with the company, you still gain a full degree as any other university student would. Both you and your company are responsible for your training and your degree success, you need to put in the work and effort to achieve your qualifications, but your company should spend time and resources to aid you in doing so. The best part? Your degree is completely free! No student debt at the end.
But how do you actually find a degree apprenticeship? How do you apply? What is the application process like? I can help with that!
Here I have a series of videos explaining some major questions I had about the whole process. Please remember that all courses and company experiences will be different – this is just the experience I had, but it may give you a useful insight into the journey I took!
How to find
Finding a degree apprenticeship is the first step of course! The best thing to do is go to the government’s apprenticeship website and search for the level (for me this was degree level) and the desired subject area. By checking here, you can access each company’s degree apprenticeship directly and check that it follows the apprenticeship standards. you may have to just keep looking with multiple different search terms. Keep an open mind! I wanted to work in physics and have ended up working in cyber security for nuclear power stations, I still get to do lots of physics and even engineering. You never know what options may be out there that interest you. For certain apprenticeships, you may need to move across country, although many will offer working from home options, you need to try and work with the flexibility and consider the working environment that will suit your needs.
How to apply
Once you have found your degree apprenticeship, you can put in an application directly through the company’s career website. When applying, you will be expected to answer a couple of questions about your subject interest and motivations for applying. You will also be asked to provide a CV, unlike UCAS applications. I have some CV advice and a free to download template here! Be passionate. Display your interest for the subject and everything you’ve done to advance your knowledge and skills in that area. Following your application, there will be tests and interviews, maybe even presentations or group work. Know the company, understand the company goals. Be confident and let your personality shine through. The company will be looking for people with the right attitude, not necessarily all the skills. They are there to teach you the skills and expertise, they cannot teach you a positive attitude and strong work ethic.
How to succeed
Like a regular degree, you will be expected to attend lectures and complete exams and assignments for each module. Every course varies but for me, there are 4 modules per year, each with an exam and an assignment. Assignments often involve an essay as well as practical work and they count for 50% of the module’s grade. Grading works the same as full courses with firsts, seconds and thirds. Your grades will matter! Your employer may expect certain grades to be achieved. At the end of your course, you may have further exams and you may have to put together a portfolio of technical competencies to demonstrate skills that you have put into practice in the workplace. All of these scenarios should be real work examples and you need to be able to talk about them with confidence. The degree you receive will be the same as any other full time university course.
Life as a degree apprentice
Everyone’s experience will vary but mine has honestly been great so far! In office, I am treated as any other employee. I benefit from all company offers such as healthcare and pension schemes as well as being paid a regular annual salary. In my daily life, I get to sit in on meetings and I am free to participate – my opinions, thoughts and ideas are never considered to be any less valuable just because I’m an apprentice. I’m involved in quite a few projects! However, there is also a lot of in-office training involved. Mine in particular involves a lot of engineering principles as I lack an engineering background. Everyone’s job role will be different!
In university, I attend lectures and complete exams and assignments for modules. However, my lectures are often a lot more like informal, classroom sessions with 20 students. We can converse with our tutor and we get lots of support. I like the learning environment as it’s very practical and not just theoretical. This means that I can then put it into practice at work.
It is expected that your employer will accommodate for you to spend 20% of your work hours completing study time or assignments for your university course. In my case, it actually ends up being slightly more as I have a lot of training to do! This just means that my expected study time can be completed without taking too much away from evenings and weekends – working as well as completing a degree is difficult!
I think overall, the best part is that it forces you to be very independent and develop yourself. I was able to move out at age 18 and be financially stable living away from home, owning my own car, learning to be an adult essentially! A regular salary teaches you to manage your outgoings, however you don’t have to factor in any student loan or student debt!