School Leaver Options

Here you can find the various school leaver pathways available to you in one place – apprenticeships, school leaver programmes, sponsored degrees, further education college, university and work – as well as detailed information on all these options.

Apprenticeships come in different levels – Intermediate Apprenticeships, Advanced Apprenticeships, Higher Apprenticeships and Degree Apprenticeships – all offering different qualifications and skills, to people at various stages along their education and career paths. School leaver programmes are similar to apprenticeships in that they offer a great combination of work and training and/or study, but with their own twist, depending on the employer and the type of programme. Check out the advice articles in this section to find out more about the differences between these school leaver schemes.

Our section on college will give you the low down on options at further education college – the courses and qualifications on offer, the advantages of attending college, how different they are to school – and our university section will help out with explaining sponsored degrees, as well as your options in terms of making gap years work for your career, and how to choose what university is right for you.

The work section of this page will help you figure out if you want to dive straight into a standard job after school or college, as well as giving advice on everything from CVs, job interviews and employability, to career tests and information on internships.

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Apprenticeships

Here you’ll find information on– Intermediate Apprenticeships, Advanced Apprenticeships, Higher Apprenticeships and Degree Apprenticeships, which all offer school leavers different qualifications and skills. You’ll also find details on the various industries in which you can do the programmes, such as Advanced Apprenticeships in fashion retail, or Higher Apprenticeships in digital media. School leaver programmes are similar in that they combine work and training, but with their own twist, depending on the employer. Check out the advice articles in this section to find out more about the differences between these school leaver schemes, and the specific advantages they offer.

College

This section on further education college will give you the low down the courses and qualifications on offer in these institutions – apprenticeships, BTECs and NVQ, for example – the advantages of attending college, and how different they are to school, in everything from dress code to culture and timetables. We break down what vocational courses are like, and the advantages of them compared with other, more traditionally academic pathways such as A-levels at school or a degree at university.

University

Our university section includes information on sponsored degrees and the various types of programme that tend to be offered by employers. We also have advice on the subjects available on sponsored degrees, applying for the schemes, and the differences between sponsored degrees and apprenticeships, school leaver programmes and standard university degrees. As well as this we’ve included information on gap years and university covering topics such as making gap years work for your career, and how to choose which university is right for you.

Work

Here in our section dedicated to work you’ll find key advice for school leavers, helping you figure out if you want to dive straight into a standard job after school or college, as well as giving advice on everything from CVs, cover letter writing (including common mistakes) and job interviews, to career tests and information on internships. We’ve also got guidance on how to improve your employability using online tools like LinkedIn, practical steps on things like pay rises, and even how to work out your take-home pay every month.

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