Skip the debt, start earning: Why apprenticeships are Britain's best-kept career secret
7 June 2025, 14:29
Britain has a serious skills problem.
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Employers are crying out for qualified workers, from tech wizards to healthcare heroes. But here's the thing: traditional university routes aren't filling these gaps fast enough. Apprenticeships are.
While your friends are racking up many thousands in student debt and facing a tough graduate job market, you could earn a wage and gain fundamental skills employers want. That's the power of an apprenticeship – and it's time to climb the apprentice and skills ladder of opportunity.
Earn While You Learn – It's That Simple
Forget three years of beans on toast and overdrafts. Apprentices get paid from day one while picking up skills that matter in the real world. No disconnect between theory and practice – you'll learn skills and knowledge simultaneously, making you immediately valuable to employers.
And the numbers don't lie. Over 90% of apprentices who finish their programmes land skilled jobs, often staying with the same employer who trained them. Try getting those odds with a generic degree.
Common Misconceptions
Despite this, many people don’t realise that apprenticeships now run from Level 3 (equivalent to A-levels) all the way up to degree level and beyond. You can become everything from a skilled electrician or advanced manufacturing technician to a chartered accountant, software engineer, or even a solicitor – all through apprenticeships.
Want to work in tech? Digital apprenticeships are leading to degree-level qualifications. Fancy finance? You can train as an investment banker through apprenticeship routes. Healthcare calling? Nursing degree apprenticeships are available. The days when apprenticeships only led to traditional trades are long gone.
Another common misconception is that apprenticeships are only for 16-year-olds. Nearly half of all apprentices are over 25. Whether you're stuck in a dead-end job, returning to work after time off, or ready for a complete career change, apprenticeships offer a ladder up without the financial nosedive.
The Social Mobility Engine
Apprenticeships are breaking down the barriers that have kept too many people locked out of promising careers. They're giving people from all backgrounds, regardless of family income, postcode, or whether you're the first in your family to aim for a professional career, a genuine shot at skilled, well-paid jobs.
No family connections are needed, no expensive private education is required, and there is no needfor parents who understand how the professional world works—just your willingness to learn and work hard. Apprenticeships judge you on your potential, not your past, making them one of the most powerful tools for social mobility we have.
Your Move
Britain needs skilled workers. Employers are desperate for talent. And you need a career that pays the bills and offers progression. Apprenticeships tick every box.
From aeronautical engineering to zoology, with business, healthcare, media and policing in between, there's virtually no career path that doesn't now have an apprenticeship route. And those who complete their programmes? They're getting the employment outcomes that matter, in skilled jobs, career progression, and employers who value what they bring to the table.
The challenge isn't whether apprenticeships work. It's making sure more people know they exist and are on a fast track to the career you want.
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Rt Hon Robert Halfon is ex-Skills Minister and Senior Adviser at BPP Education Group
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