Am I old enough to do an Apprenticeship?

Last updated 01 Aug 2016

If you’re old enough to leave school in whichever part of the UK you live, then you are old enough to be an apprentice. This does vary slightly between England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and there are different entry requirements depending on the sector and job.

To give you an idea of the range of ages at which people start apprenticeships, here are some stats for the year 2013/14 in England.

You might be surprised at the numbers at the higher end of the scale!

Under 16 – 160

Age 16 – 28,020 (5.6% of total)

Age 17 – 42,070 (8.4% of total)

Age 18 – 55,600 (11.1% of total)

Age 19-24 – 160,180 (32.0% of total)

Age 25-34 –97,650 (19.5% of total)

Age 35-44 – 57,070 (11.4% of total)

Age 45-59 – 55,730 (11.1% of total)

Age 60+ – 3,410 (0.7% of total)

Although certain age ranges have a higher number of apprenticeship starts, these statistics should show that apprenticeships are not just for the school leaver - so don't be put off if you're not fresh out of secondary school!