This research, supported by the Gatsby Foundation as part of its programme of work to strengthen higher technical education in England, considered pathways to developing and delivering accelerated degree apprenticeships. These are apprenticeships where only the Level 6 (degree level) part is delivered and are designed for individuals who already have relevant Level 5 qualifications, apprenticeships, or equivalent work experience. The growth of higher technical education, where individuals achieve Level 4 and 5 qualifications, meant there could be a market for accelerated degree apprenticeships in specific sectors where employers or individuals demand degree level qualifications.
Our research found a small number of accelerated degree apprenticeships running in nursing, management, construction and engineering, with plans for developing one in early years teaching. We spoke to the education providers, mostly universities, and one large employer for these accelerated degree apprenticeships, as well as presenting to the Institutes of Technology network, also supported by the Gatsby Charitable Foundation.
The key enablers to developing degree apprenticeships were: institutional knowledge and experience in offering apprenticeships; strong existing relationships between the education provider and employers; strong relationships between colleges and higher education institutions; the ability to combine apprentices with undergraduate learners in some capacity; offering integrated accelerated degree apprenticeships; and good learner outcomes and feedback when the programmes were running. The main barriers were: the accelerated nature of the programme leaving limited time; differences in learners’ ability; lack of clarity or guidance on best practice; lack of data to support future planning.
We recommend that guidance and consistency around the recognition of prior learning and an accelerated degree apprenticeship offer is developed to support providers wanting to develop these kinds of programmes. We also consider that the current changes around apprenticeship assessment may impact the possibility of this kind of apprenticeship.
Read the full Accelerated Degree Apprenticeships (PDF, 276KB) report.
