Degree Apprenticeship vs Degree

Hi everyone,

I’m going to go into year 12 in September and I’m hoping to study computer science, software engineering or any tech related degree at University.

For the field I’m going into, doing a degree apprenticeship sounds ideal as experience is crucial in this role and at the same time I can go to university. However, if I was to do a normal degree in computer science, etc, I could go to a prestigious university such as oxford and I really want to go but with a degree
apprenticeship the university wouldn’t be Oxford, it might still be a good uni but not Oxford or Cambridge and I really want to go there but at the same time I went to a degree apprenticeship as there’s so many perks such as the company you work for pays you a salary and Tuition fees are paid for...and I don’t really want to have to pay back money after uni, so it’s good for me.

WHAT SHOULD I DO, I KNOW I HAVE PLENTY OF TIME TO THINK BUT ITS NEVER TOO EARLY TO BE THINKING ABOUT YOUR FUTURE!

Hi everyone,

I’m going to go into year 12 in September and I’m hoping to study computer science, software engineering or any tech related degree at University.

For the field I’m going into, doing a degree apprenticeship sounds ideal as experience is crucial in this role and at the same time I can go to university. However, if I was to do a normal degree in computer science, etc, I could go to a prestigious university such as oxford and I really want to go but with a degree
apprenticeship the university wouldn’t be Oxford, it might still be a good uni but not Oxford or Cambridge and I really want to go there but at the same time I went to a degree apprenticeship as there’s so many perks such as the company you work for pays you a salary and Tuition fees are paid for...and I don’t really want to have to pay back money after uni, so it’s good for me.

WHAT SHOULD I DO, I KNOW I HAVE PLENTY OF TIME TO THINK BUT ITS NEVER TOO EARLY TO BE THINKING ABOUT YOUR FUTURE!

Sounds a bit of a cop out answer I know....but..... follow your gut instinct. Having done both an apprenticeship and also been to University, the Apprenticeship was a better learning experience for me but not everyone is the same.

Professionally, however, my gut instincts have rarely let me down, maybe trust yours and see what happens.

Best of luck

you can also apply to both at the same time...
UCAS and the individual universities/companies

so you do truly have lots of time to get as much info as possible and make your mind up

do you know how tuition money is paid back?

I've heard that those with degree apprenticeships are stacking up far better for employment prospects than those with a traditional degree. Employers tend to value work experience much more as opposed to the reputation of the university you studied at.

The degree apprenticeship would be a more viable option in my opinion.

I feel like companies will definitely favour job candidates that have experience and a degree, most of these candidates will be older and have had years of job experience after their degree, but if you take the degree apprenticeship route it's a two in one situation and the benefits are huge. The learning of skills that you won't necessarily learn in uni, alongside the years of practice and the company paying for your degree and paying a good wage, puts you in the best position to develop your career and will make you highly likely to outcompete Oxford or Cambridge uni graduates once the apprenticeship is finished.
I would definitely start looking for degree apprenticeship courses in that particular field and may be weighing up the advantages and disadvantages of taking the uni route as oppose to the apprenticeship route.

My daughter was in that dilemma and is 99% sure she's going for the apprenticeship! I would say keep all options open! Apply for the uni degrees and apply for apprenticeships. See what you get offered. It's quite a competitive drawn out process applying for apprenticeships - so see which ones you really want to do - as the application itself, interviews etc does take away valuable A level study time! So apply for about 3-5 you are really keen on. Apply to uni too. Oxford isn't guaranteed even for the A star students. Then when you have your offers on the table - make a decision. Personally I think there are pros and cons to both. The main con is missing out on the uni student experience, eg,living in halls, campus life etc - but while there's been a pandemic that isn't quite what it used to be anyway. Also the apprenticeship university doesn't have the prestige of the ones she applied to. But you can always do a masters at a top uni afterwards. Otherwise the pros are great - hands on experience, degree paid for, support from experienced staff, no debt etc. The actual apprenticeship degree modules look very interesting too and very relevant to work. My daughter has gone down an IT route too and I think the hands on work experience will be great. I do however think it will be extremely hard work combining learning a job and studying with only 5 or so weeks off a year - no long uni holidays. However, we thought ultimately - if you get an opportunity like this it's worth a go - it's like a golden ticket into the world of work - and if it ends up being a disaster, university will still be there next year and you can reapply! Good luck and keep all options open!

Oh, I didn’t realise I could do that! Thank you, could you explain this in a bit more detail?
And yep I am aware, you start paying back a little amount every month once you start earning a certain salary