Dropping out of Cambridge for a degree apprenticeship

I’m currently studying computer science at Cambridge and it hasn’t been going so well, so I’ve applied to DA’s. I’m waiting to hear back from EY about an offer, and wondering if as soon as I sign the contract, I have to withdraw from my University studies?
I’m also worried the contract won’t be set in stone and they could revoke it/ have an issue with me starting uni elsewhere.
Can anyone tell me what I should do in this situation, if I should just ask HR at EY (although they’re extremely slow at getting back to people).
I’m just nervous in general about leaving something more stable like uni even tho it’s been horrible for my mental health. Any advice anyone would have is appreciated.

Are you sure this is what you want?
What is it about Computer Science at Cambridge that isn’t going so well?
And what will you be studying at EY? I’m sure you’re well aware that an apprenticeship is not the easier option. You’ll be working full time and studying towards a degree/ professional qualification. Some firms have an extremely strict policy that if you fail an exam twice, that’s your job gone.
As you’re well aware, the hours at EY or any top accounting firm really aren’t great. Longest I worked in Audit at a top 10 firm was until 10pm as an apprentice.
Assess the pros and cons of leaving Cambridge for EY. If you believe uni is terrible for your mental health, will working full time alongside uni be any better??
Make sure you’re leaving for the right reasons.
To answer your question, don’t withdraw from Cambridge until you’ve signed your contract with EY and successfully completed all background checks.

Whether you stay at Cambridge or choose EY, the final decision is yours to make.
Both are great opportunities however, both routes are just as hard. You’ll experience the same 60hrs at EY.
Stay resilient and keep pushing. Remember, you are smart enough. You secured a place at Cambridge for a reason. Don’t beat yourself up and own it.
It’s great that you’re on a gap year. Make the most of it and put yourself first.
Make a pros and cons list for each, and if at the end of it your heart is with EY go for it. It won’t be easy, you’ll have to stay disciplined. But you’re right, sometimes you just need a fresh start.

Thank you for the words of encouragement. It's a decision I've been going back and forth over for months now and I'm still unclear on what's best for me. I feel like I'll never know though until I just go and do it.

What would you do in my position? I am trying to figure out objectively what is the best opportunity for me. Idk if there's a point leaving for EY if the workload is just as bad, the whole point I am trying to leave is to prioritise my mental health and happiness. It seems like this isn't a solution in that case.

Thank you for the words of encouragement. It's a decision I've been going back and forth over for months now and I'm still unclear on what's best for me. I feel like I'll never know though until I just go and do it.
What would you do in my position? I am trying to figure out objectively what is the best opportunity for me. Idk if there's a point leaving for EY if the workload is just as bad, the whole point I am trying to leave is to prioritise my mental health and happiness. It seems like this isn't a solution in that case.

It really depends when you’re due to start working, now the honest & probably most ethical thing to do is, if you sign the contract withdraw from university before you clash as you won’t be able do both…
You probably could sign the contract then not notify your university & “play the game” of withdrawing from one later in the day and decide closer to the time. Now this can risk burning bridges and it can prevent others from getting the job, however it’s also the selfish pragmatic approach, and ill be honest a lot of people would do this. I generally say be ethical, honest and also look after yourself as nobody else will manage your career - unfortunately this is one of those circumstances where you have a clash of principles, only you can decide.
From a long term upside, is the apprenticeship in a role or skill you want to do and would be happy in a day to day basis for a career. The degree apprenticeship will get you into a great organisation & probably excellent short & medium term financial opportunities however it is traded off against a lot of future career freedom, especially with a Cambridge degree (which really has career long brand value).

Thanks, I was just worried about how it works with UCAS, like if I’ll be enrolled on two courses and that’ll be a massive issue, so i was unsure if I have to withdraw immediately from Cambridge.
Idk if an apprenticeship at EY is worth leaving Cambridge over. Like I already have two summer internships on my CV, and since I’ll be redoing second year, I’ll have another opportunity to put a summer on my CV, and could potentially get a good grad job. Especially if I spend my time off now grinding leetcode and learning new languages/ doing my own coding projects.
My only issue right now is my health and there’s no telling if it’ll affect me during a degree apprenticeship too. And with a DA I feel like it’s a great opportunity to get industry experience, I do think it’s a much better opportunity than uni, but idk if it’s worth leaving Cambridge for, especially when I’ve already invested so much time and effort.
In all honesty I have no idea what I’m doing with my life.

I’m 19, going on 20.
I got all of my uni offers in 2023 and got into Uni of Leeds on results day for Business Management. However, I never planned on going. I was always set on the apprenticeship route.
I’m not going to lie, it hasn’t been easy at all. Been on 2 (incomplete) apprenticeships and currently on a gap year (only for 6 months).
Plan to start a degree apprenticeship in September. It’s been tough, but I know an apprenticeship is the right route for me so I’m going to keep pushing for a good one, with a supportive company as well. I rushed into things, and ended up at not so great companies.
Honestly you’re still young, you’ve got so much time to decide. I often find myself stressing, and beating my self up thinking I should I’ve just went uni. But I wouldn’t have been happy.
My last firm was so toxic, and I often went home in tears. Currently prioritising my mental health also. That’s just life though, there’s going to be many ups and downs, just have to keep are head up.
Don’t be discouraged, there’s people who drop out of uni for apprenticeships all the time, but there’s also many who leave their apprenticeships to go back to uni. 49% of people don’t finish their apprenticeships.
Think about your future, and where you want to go. Whichever option you make is okay!
I’d personally go for EY, it’s hard but everything’s hard lol.

You’ve done 3 years at Cambridge already. Sounds to me like you’re just consumed with the fear of failing. How long left until you graduate?

Haha you hit it right on the nose. That’s exactly what’s been causing my problems for my entire time at uni.
I’ll be due to restart second year in September, so I’d graduate in 2026 if everything goes smoothly.

Thank you for sharing your story. I’m sorry it’s been so difficult so far, and you should be proud of yourself for staying strong and being so resilient!!
You’ve given me some great advice, and I’ll definitely keep that in mind. It does sound like EY is the better choice career wise, but my main issue right now is workload and idk if I can leave for something just as difficult with more risk. Uni is at least lenient because of my health issues etc and allows me to redo exams when I fail.
As you can see I’m so indecisive, I just wish the decision would be made for me, I have no idea what the right choice is.

Thanks, I was just worried about how it works with UCAS, like if I’ll be enrolled on two courses and that’ll be a massive issue, so i was unsure if I have to withdraw immediately from Cambridge.

Idk if an apprenticeship at EY is worth leaving Cambridge over. Like I already have two summer internships on my CV, and since I’ll be redoing second year, I’ll have another opportunity to put a summer on my CV, and could potentially get a good grad job. Especially if I spend my time off now grinding leetcode and learning new languages/ doing my own coding projects.

My only issue right now is my health and there’s no telling if it’ll affect me during a degree apprenticeship too. And with a DA I feel like it’s a great opportunity to get industry experience, I do think it’s a much better opportunity than uni, but idk if it’s worth leaving Cambridge for, especially when I’ve already invested so much time and effort.

In all honesty I have no idea what I’m doing with my life.

Ah you applied for the apprenticeship on UCAS? In all honesty im not sure then
Could you ask to defer the apprenticeship or convert onto the graduate program?
The big drawback of the apprenticeship is normally they mould you into a specific tool, with a certain set of skills & certain set of experiences and it can be much tougher & takes longer to move roles unless they are similar to what you have under your belt. Whereas with the degree you could far more easily move around industries, make bigger career moves, especially internationally.
The big benefit of the apprenticeship is financial reward versus debt and securing a position in a prestigious corporation (I would suggest the financial benefit is heavily offset by already being in the student debt hole for multiple years & Cambridges reputation significantly hedges your ability to ‘break in’ to industry, even if you don’t land a big 4 role lots of the prestigious boutiques are options as well as many many more industries).

Unless you think failure is a certainty, stay at Cambridge. You'd be jumping into the unknown and leaving with nothing.
My concern would be that you've mentioned your mental health and fear of failure. Consider that you would be going from a situation at university where the focus is almost all about you and most of the weight of expectation etc if from yourself. Contrast this with degree apprenticeship where the company is paying for everything and you are an employee. What you want and how you feel is going to be secondary to what is good for the company. Think carefully about how you will feel and react when someone else's priorities come into conflict with your own.
I think it might be important to consider what your life is going to look like going forward under any scenario. There are very likely to be challenges, conflicts and hard work. It seems you don't have a problem with the work - but what will that look like when its someone else's work being allocated to you with deadlines plus your own DA studies and submissions.

You don’t apply for apprenticeships via UCAS. It’s through the company.
The company picks the training provider and registers you with them once you receive an offer and pass background checks. If OP gets the offer, their training provider would be BPP University.
But due to government funding you can’t be a full time uni student and a degree apprentice. Doesn’t work that way.
Think OP is confused. You wouldn’t be allowed to be enrolled on both.