Leaving school and venturing into the big wide world can be a daunting task for any young person, and being stuck in a classroom five days a week isn’t for everyone. But an apprenticeship qualification is a great alternative. Apprenticeships can be undertaken in a variety of industries from sports coaching, business administration to engineering. What’s more, these qualifications also have a wide range of levels. You can now study many apprenticeships from Level 2 all the way through to Level 5. Who says you have to take out a student loan and go to university to get a degree?

Apprenticeships for school leavers: where to start?

The key to getting the right apprenticeship is to consider your own interests and motivations and then apply for vacancies that reflect these.Β  A good example to consider is coaching. This is the perfect avenue for a school leaver with a passion for sport and helping others. By completing a coaching apprenticeship, you not only get to work in a job you love, but also get the feel-good factor of helping others improve their skills, whilst improving your own!

To find apprenticeship vacancies, a great place to start is with the government service “find an apprenticeship.” By using this service you can apply for apprenticeship vacancies in your local area.

The benefits of apprenticeships for school leavers

  • Getting paid by an employer
  • Learning from real-life experiences in the workplace
  • Getting time to study a qualification (20% off the job training)
  • Getting recognised qualifications
  • Job satisfaction
  • Learning from other more experienced colleagues in the workplace
  • Boosting your experiences levels for future jobs
  • Improving your CV
  • Job satisfaction through selecting the right organisation/industry

man standing on top of rock mountain during golden hour

The benefits for employers on hiring school leavers and young people

  • Having an employee who is keen to learn and brings energy to the organisation
  • Giving a chance to a young person to get on the career ladder
  • Developing and supporting staff members for future jobs/roles
  • Helping the local area by reducing unemployment
  • Getting the chance to nurture potential leaders and highly skilled staff
  • Bringing in new ideas to the organisation
  • Finding talented staff to complement existing staff members

If you enjoyed this article you may enjoy our previous post:

Creating an Outstanding CV for School Leavers

You can find out about our apprenticeship provision here.