• Question: After sixth form, would you advise to do a degree apprenticeship and have the years of experience and degree or go to university for my degree?

    Asked by JessicaMoore on 10 May 2018.
    • Photo: Harriet Bray

      Harriet Bray answered on 9 May 2018:

      It depends a bit on what you want to do after your degree / apprenticeship. You could look at degrees with industry experience, I spent a year of my degree working in a company which was very valuable.

      Which ever you pick make sure that the course is focused on an area which you are interested in and provides good quality skills.

    • Photo: Iulia Motoc

      Iulia Motoc answered on 9 May 2018:

      It depends on you really. But if you do want the work experience, all universities offer year in industry. You get to do you degree and then after your second year go work for a company that has a partnership with the university you are studying at. Most of the people I know did year in industry, were offered full time jobs by the company they did the year in industry with. So this is a good way to know you have a job secured after you graduate.

    • Photo: anon

      anon answered on 9 May 2018:

      I didn’t do an apprenticeship, I went straight to university after sixth form and that worked out very well.

    • Photo: Hannah Tanner

      Hannah Tanner answered on 4 Jun 2018:

      I think practical work experience on top of a degree is always more desirable to an employer than a degree alone. If you didn’t want to do an apprenticeship definitely look for a degree with a year in industry or get practical work experience in all the holidays.
      If you ever want to work in a hospital laboratory, make sure you look for IBMS accredited degrees because these are the only ones that will allow you to become a Biomedical Scientist.

    • Photo: Lydia James

      Lydia James answered on 26 Jun 2018:

      It is entirely up to your circumstances and what’s available in your desired field. Degree apprenticeships are still relatively new so universities may not offer a wide selection of courses. Alternatively you can look at higher apprenticeships which may involve going to college for a HNC/HND or studying a specific degree at university and getting to work alongside your studies.

      Experience is always a great idea and can really help you narrow down what interests you and what you’d like to focus on as an area of work when you graduate. But there are other ways if you are worried about funding your degree and reducing your student debt. There are scholarships you can apply for to reduce your tuition or maintenance loan.

      You can also go to university and take a year out after your second year to take an industrial placement for a year where you are a paid employee within a company and spend your time with them working on projects and perhaps receiving specialist training required for your job role. If you don’t want to take a break in-between your studies there are industrial placements that act more like work experience placements where you can spend 1 to 3 months during your summer holidays working and earning in a wide range of companies.

      If you feel that you would benefit from learning from real life applications of the skills a degree is teaching you then apprenticeships are a fantastic option but they can mean you will take 5 years to complete an undergraduate degree instead of the standard 3 years.

    • Photo: John Allport

      John Allport answered on 19 Sep 2019:

      I would agree with many of the other people who have answered this question. The secret to getting a job once you qualify is to have a mixture of skills. This includes work experience as well as the academic skills. A degree with work experience is far better than a degree on its own, but if you can find a degree apprenticeship, there are the added benefits of being paid whilst you are learning.
      I did the equivalent of a degree apprenticeship many years ago, and have always been glad that I did, the practical experience was invaluable and helped to put everything that I learned during my time at university into context. I also now see the difference in students when they return to the university for their final year after a year in industry. They are totally different people, far more mature and they can relate to their studies much more than before they went on placement.

Comments

  • Photo: Helen

    Helen commented on :

    The Managing Director of my company started as an apprentice and worked his way up. Doing an apprenticeship isn’t a barrier to achieving things and means you won’t incur debt.

  • Photo: Hayley

    Hayley commented on :

    Relevant experience will always help you get a job in industry but it depends what you are interested in. If you don’t have a particular job in mind but are interested in the subject focus on the subject and developing your skills within that.
    If you know what company you’d like to work for and they offer an apprenticeship then that would be perfect.
    Think about what you want from a degree and choose based on that. Is it learning to expand your knowledge and interests or learning to get a job?