Is an apprenticeship the right choice for my child?

When your child is nearing completing their GCSEs, they will need to start thinking about the next steps. This can be both exciting and daunting, as there are a variety of options available, each with their own pros and cons. One option is an apprenticeship, which will allow your child to combine study with paid employment, resulting in a professional qualification.

Below are some reasons to go for an apprenticeship:

Applied training

Apprenticeships provide focussed and applied training within a particular field, which is ideal if your child has demonstrated an interest in a career route that doesn’t necessarily require degree level education. Your child may want to pursue a career in construction, for example, in which case a construction apprenticeship might be the ideal choice.

Practical learning

Apprenticeships are great for young people who aren’t really suited to academic study. After all, we are not all academically inclined, some of us prefer a more practical approach to learning. Apprenticeships allow young people to develop important transferable skills which will make it a lot easier for them to get another job in the future, once their training is complete.

Pay, holidays and hands-on-experience

What’s more, as apprenticeships are usually paid, they will give your child the opportunity to become more financially independent, teaching them important skills in money management. As well as the obvious training they will receive, they will also have hands-on experience, holiday leave, and a nationally recognised certificate at the end of the course. All of this combined provides for a highly rewarding experience for young adults.

But bear in mind…

As apprenticeships train people within a particular field, your child will need to be relatively certain that this is what they want from a future career. If they are unsure, it might be better for them to continue into higher education where they can study various different subjects and eventually go off to university. Be sure to speak to your child’s teachers and careers advisors for more information, as this will put you in a better position to support your child.