Fewer than 1 in 12 students (8 per cent) aged 15 to 18 in school or college in 2016/2017 are being advised to seek a work-based apprenticeship afterwards, according to new YouGov survey findings commissioned by the trade association ECA, apprenticeship training organisation JTL, and the Joint Industry Board.
In contrast, some 85 per cent of students are instead encouraged to go into further or higher education, such as university study, after finishing at school or college. Just 3 per cent were advised to seek a job.
In addition, over one-quarter of students (28 per cent) said they had never even been spoken to about work-based apprenticeships by their school or college.
Alex Meikle, Director of Employment and Skills at ECA, commented: “These findings show that too many young people are effectively being led up the garden path by careers advice in schools, which is significantly out of step with the needs of industry and future employers. There is a growing recognition of the value of undertaking apprenticeships, particularly engineering, and the electrotechnical industry will be looking to undertake further work with schools and colleges to encourage greater takeup among students.”
Jon Graham, Chief Executive of JTL, said: “There are some fantastic opportunities out there for young people to start an apprenticeship and embark on a career in a highly skilled and well paid job. However schools need to do more to highlight the benefits of apprenticeships, and we look forward to working with them on this agenda.”
Just 1 in 14 (7 per cent) students were ever encouraged to consider finding a job in a skilled trade. This compares to 3 in 10 being encouraged into roles within medicine such as a doctor (31 per cent), education such as a teacher (31 per cent) and legal / finance (30 per cent). 36 per cent were however advised to consider careers in engineering.
