This article, written by journalist Daniel Bardsley and featuring input from myself and my colleague David Hawkins, was published in the United Arab Emirates by The National newspaper last week (12th May 2022). It was written for students in the UAE, but I think some of the content is universally relevant. I was especially pleased … Continue reading Is it better to study abroad or in your home country? How to choose a university

Latest reflections It’s been an eventful week, especially in the Midlands and the East. I recorded 416 new vacancies, much higher than average, and the most prolific counties were West Midlands (161) and Derbyshire (57) which was largely but not solely due to bulk DA vacancies for Police Officers with West Midlands Police and NDT … Continue reading Week 112: Higher & Degree Apprenticeship vacancies in England – lots of activity

Latest reflections The number of new vacancies this week was par for the course given the bank holiday and the time of year. Software Developers, Project Managers and Vehicle Damage Assessors were the busiest occupations and health professions continued to be quite prominent too. These come in a steady trickle rather than a torrent, but … Continue reading Week 111: Higher & Degree Apprenticeship vacancies in England – latest insights

Latest reflections Whilst it was a relatively steady week, there’s always something interesting to report. Health professions in particular have been fairly prominent in recent months and the NHS Jobs website has become an increasingly useful vacancy source. I do have to make judgements on what to include, as some health apprenticeships are aimed at … Continue reading Week 110: Higher & Degree Apprenticeship vacancies in England – steady but interesting

Latest reflections Despite a couple of weeks in Africa and a break over the Easter period, I still kept a close eye on the post-18 apprenticeships landscape and, sure enough, lots of interesting activity has taken place. The most significant development was a substantial posting of Police Constable DA vacancies by The Met, which has … Continue reading Week 109: Higher & Degree Apprenticeship vacancies in England – an evolving landscape

Latest reflections When the country first locked down two years ago, I needed a new project to focus my mind on. I decided to refresh an activity I was already engaged in and that fed into the “Options at 18 in a Changing World” talks I presented in various schools and colleges. The activity involved … Continue reading Two years since the start of the first COVID lockdown: how the Higher & Degree Apprenticeship landscape in England has shaped up

Latest reflections It’s almost two years since the first lockdown began and the steady improvement of my post-18 apprenticeships data over that period has been quite a positive story during generally difficult times. Week 103 was another solid week, especially for HAs. It could have been better still, but I’ve delayed the inclusion of a … Continue reading Week 103: Higher & Degree Apprenticeship vacancies in England in the COVID era – another solid week

Applications for this unique apprenticeship opportunity have opened again for 2022 and to help spread the word I’m pleased to update and re-publish an article I wrote about the programme last year.   The article was inspired by a former client of mine, Holly-Ann, who joined Trafigura after completing her A Levels in 2019. And … Continue reading Trafigura’s unique Global Commodity Trading Apprenticeship programme 2022

Latest reflections The two big winners this week in terms of location and occupation were not ones you would normally expect to see in lights, namely Wiltshire and Supply Chain Leaders. Looking back to the early days of the pandemic in Spring 2020, Wiltshire was very slow to register any vacancies at all. However, it … Continue reading Week 102: Higher & Degree Apprenticeship vacancies in England in the COVID era – another busy week

Latest reflections Following the substantial surge in new DA and HA vacancies during the three weeks surrounding National Apprenticeships Week that I reported in my Week 98, 99 and 100 updates, ‘normality’ resumed in Week 101 (i.e. 101 weeks since the first COVID lockdown). However, ‘normality’ still shows what I perceive to be a more … Continue reading Week 101: Higher & Degree Apprenticeship vacancies in England in the COVID era – latest labour market insights