Latest news with #Ucas
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
What is an apprenticeship and how much are apprentices paid?
The government is scrapping funding for postgraduate apprenticeships for people aged 22 or over in England from next year. It says the move will mean money can be put towards lower levels of training instead. Minimum wages for apprentices went up in April. But, with dropout rates at about 50% and concern about low pay, there is a lot to consider when weighing up whether or not it is for you. Being an apprentice means you usually spend four days a week working, and one day studying for a qualification at work, college, university or online. You get paid and the qualification you get is free - it is paid for by the government and your employer. Since last April, the government has paid small companies the full cost of apprenticeships for people aged 21 or under to help small businesses create more apprenticeships. Any employer can hire apprentices. They are responsible for making sure you work with experienced staff and receive time off for studying. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the different levels of apprenticeship are: Intermediate (Level 2 - GCSE standard) Advanced (Level 3 - A-level standard) Higher (Levels 4, 5, 6 and 7 - foundation degree or above) Degree (Levels 6 and 7 - bachelor's or master's degree) In England, only 16 to 21-year-olds and existing apprentices will qualify for funding for level 7 apprenticeships from January. In Scotland, they are: Foundation (mostly SCQF Level 6 - Highers standard) Modern (mostly SCQF Levels 6 and 7 - Highers or Advanced Highers standard) Graduate (SCQF Levels 9, 10 and 11 - undergraduate or master's degree standard) If you are under 19, or if you are 19 or older but in the first year of your apprenticeship, you will be paid the apprentice rate, £7.55 per hour. Otherwise, you will earn at least the minimum wage: £10 for 19 and 20-year-olds £12.21 for those aged 21 or above. This rate is also known as the National Living Wage People often do apprenticeships if they know the career they want, or if they are already working in their chosen career but want more skills. There are no UK-wide figures for the number of apprentices, but there were 736,500 in England last year. Advanced apprenticeships - A-level standard - are the most popular, and the number of people doing higher apprenticeships has been rising. In the 2023-24 academic year, 23% of new apprentices were under 19. If you know where you want to work, you can head straight to the employer's website and apply. You can search for apprenticeship opportunities through different official websites in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. If you are in England, you can make an account and apply to several apprenticeships in one place. The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) allows you to search for vacancies and plans to allow you to apply for them. You will interview for the apprenticeship before you start, and you will need to pass an assessment showing what you have learned before you can finish. The most popular apprenticeships for new starters in 2022-23 were in health, public services and care - followed by business, administration and law. Some of the biggest employers of new apprentices in England in the financial year 2023-24 were the British military, the civil service, and the pub and restaurant group Mitchells & Butlers. In England, 60.5% of apprentices completed and passed a final assessment in 2023-24. The previous Conservative government had aimed for that to reach 67% by this year. A Department for Education report in March 2022 suggested that four in 10 people who did not complete their apprenticeship cited personal reasons, including career changes, mental health issues and caring responsibilities. However, about four in 10 also said they were not given enough time for training, that the training did not meet their expectations, or that the apprenticeship was badly run. Ucas has warned that young people are being put off by a range of barriers, including: low pay lack of availability having to apply for apprenticeships individually, rather than sending off one application to several employers. In February, the government relaxed the rules for apprentices over the age of 19 by allowing businesses to decide whether a maths and English qualification should be part of the prescribed course. It also confirmed plans to reduce the minimum duration of an apprenticeship, from 12 months to eight months, from August 2025. Think hard about what the apprenticeship offers - will the qualification help you progress in the career you want? Can you picture yourself in a job in the industry? What opportunities are there to progress at the organisation itself? You will want to consider where the apprenticeship is, how much you will get paid, and how long it lasts. It is important to do your research, and ask employers for details about training in your interview. You can also read reviews of apprenticeships on sites like England Scotland Wales Northern Ireland How much does university cost and does it boost earnings? Do you need a degree to work in tech? Warning apprentices quitting over quality of schemes
Powys County Times
29-04-2025
- Business
- Powys County Times
University applications for AI degrees rise 15%, data shows
Applications to study artificial intelligence (AI) at UK universities have risen by 15% this year, even as the overall number applying for broader computing degrees has fallen. Ucas data provided to the PA news agency showed that applications for degrees in AI rose by 15% among women, compared with a 12% rise among men. AI degrees only account for around 5% of all computing applications, with computer science, computer games and animation and software engineering making up the bulk of such courses, but falls in each of these subjects means applications to computing degrees in general have fallen 10% this year. The drop follows five years of growth in the subject. Experts said the shift towards AI and away from other areas of computing reflected the growing hype around AI and the push by the Government for businesses and individuals to embrace it. In January, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer unveiled the AI Opportunities Action Plan, which included proposals to vastly expand the use of AI tools in the public sector, as well as plans to invest heavily in improving and expanding the UK's AI infrastructure in the hope of making the UK a global leader in the technology. BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, which also reviewed the data, said it showed young people were aware of the potential impact of AI on the world in the years to come. Julia Adamson, MD for education at BCS, said: 'Young people – and a rising percentage of young women – know studying AI gives them the power to change the world. The results reflect the changing digital economy. AI and information systems are emerging fields, particularly for female applicants, which is a positive step towards a more diverse tech workforce. 'The Government's strategy to make the UK a global AI leader relies largely on growing the pipeline of university graduates in a range of related subjects, along with digital apprenticeships and other professional development courses. 'Specialised AI degrees are starting to grow steeply, but these are still small numbers, compared to computing courses overall. 'It's also true that people with degrees other than computing will look to enter AI through the postgraduate conversion route, such as the Google DeepMind Research Ready programme. 'We're talking to government, computing teachers in our community, universities and industry about the possible driving factors behind the overall computing trends. 'Those include – the market for entry level developer roles, whether AI has changed perceptions of tech careers, the role of big tech in geopolitics, the endemic under-representation of women in technology, and subject choices early in education.'
Western Telegraph
28-04-2025
- Business
- Western Telegraph
University applications for AI degrees rise 15%, data shows
Ucas data provided to the PA news agency showed that applications for degrees in AI rose by 15% among women, compared with a 12% rise among men. AI degrees only account for around 5% of all computing applications, with computer science, computer games and animation and software engineering making up the bulk of such courses, but falls in each of these subjects means applications to computing degrees in general have fallen 10% this year. Young people – and a rising percentage of young women – know studying AI gives them the power to change the world Julia Adamson, BCS The drop follows five years of growth in the subject. Experts said the shift towards AI and away from other areas of computing reflected the growing hype around AI and the push by the Government for businesses and individuals to embrace it. In January, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer unveiled the AI Opportunities Action Plan, which included proposals to vastly expand the use of AI tools in the public sector, as well as plans to invest heavily in improving and expanding the UK's AI infrastructure in the hope of making the UK a global leader in the technology. BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, which also reviewed the data, said it showed young people were aware of the potential impact of AI on the world in the years to come. Julia Adamson, MD for education at BCS, said: 'Young people – and a rising percentage of young women – know studying AI gives them the power to change the world. The results reflect the changing digital economy. AI and information systems are emerging fields, particularly for female applicants, which is a positive step towards a more diverse tech workforce. 'The Government's strategy to make the UK a global AI leader relies largely on growing the pipeline of university graduates in a range of related subjects, along with digital apprenticeships and other professional development courses. 'Specialised AI degrees are starting to grow steeply, but these are still small numbers, compared to computing courses overall. 'It's also true that people with degrees other than computing will look to enter AI through the postgraduate conversion route, such as the Google DeepMind Research Ready programme. 'We're talking to government, computing teachers in our community, universities and industry about the possible driving factors behind the overall computing trends. 'Those include – the market for entry level developer roles, whether AI has changed perceptions of tech careers, the role of big tech in geopolitics, the endemic under-representation of women in technology, and subject choices early in education.'
Telegraph
23-04-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Universities to increase lower offers for disadvantaged students
Universities are to increase the use of lower entry grade offers for disadvantaged students. Vice-chancellors are being encouraged to allow more 'contextual admissions' to improve access for students who face barriers. Universities UK (UUK), which represents 141 universities, has unveiled a plan for a 'more transparent and consistent approach' to contextual admissions which take into account a student's circumstances and background to recognise the barriers they may have faced. Contextual admissions are already widely used across universities but there is currently no consistent approach to the practice. The offers are typically a grade or two lower than advertised course entry requirements and can also include guaranteed interviews or additional support. As part of the new plan, named Access to Success, UUK, Ucas and the Sutton Trust will start a joint review of the criteria used for contextual admissions to encourage greater consistency across universities in England. UUK said the current admissions system is 'hard to navigate and a barrier' which is potentially putting off young people who could benefit. 'Local cold spots' The project aims to support universities in England with contextual admissions to ensure students are not prevented from reaching university because of their backgrounds. The plan also calls on universities and the Government to raise aspirations by collaborating in 'local cold spots' where historically fewer people go into higher education. UUK said: 'Our goal is to bring greater consistency to how universities approach contextual admissions and to encourage more universities to adopt them so that young people who meet the criteria can apply with greater confidence to the options available to them.' It added that universities should work with schools and further education colleges to provide improved information and advice to help students in making the right choice.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Free tutors see grades rise for Stem sixth-formers
More than 700 sixth form students have increased their grades and secured places at top universities after taking part in a free weekly tutoring programme. The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) said pupils who took part in Cambridge University's STEM SMART scheme performed better than their peers. The university said the project aimed to mitigate educational disruption caused by the pandemic and bridge attainment gaps in maths and science A-level subjects. Lisa Jardine-Wright, University of Cambridge physics lecturer, said the scheme had the capacity to support every science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem) sixth former in state schools for free. The University of Cambridge said the scheme was launched in response to challenges faced by state schools teaching physical sciences, in particular physics. It said in England there was an estimated national shortage of at least 3,500 physics teachers. Jasmine Covell, 18, who is now a first year natural sciences undergraduate at King's College, Cambridge, said Oxbridge had not been on the radar where she lived as most people applied to local universities to save on accommodation costs. She studied A-level biology, chemistry and maths at a college near Middlesbrough and was in Year 9 when the first lockdown took place. "It definitely helped with catching up on work we'd missed during Covid," she said after completing the Cambridge scheme. "We got behind on some of the content, particularly the more advanced stuff, so it was great to get the extra learning through STEM SMART." Ucas analysis of the scheme compared the first two cohorts (1,120 pupils) with 9,000 pupils from similar backgrounds. It said those who received the tuition were more aspirational and sixth formers from more disadvantaged backgrounds saw the biggest average grade boost. Samuel Iranloye, 19, joined the first cohort while studying A-level maths, further maths, physics and chemistry in south-east London. Now a second-year engineering undergraduate at Churchill College, Cambridge, he said his experiences visiting the university during the scheme influenced his choice. "The extra tuition also helped consolidate the learning in school. It also helped me when it came to preparing for my university admission tests," he said. The scheme aimed to address an attainment gap that already existed in the UK, which was then exacerbated by the pandemic, said Ms Jardine-Wright, a co-director of the programme. She said: "This is about levelling the playing field and enabling students from educationally disadvantaged and underrepresented backgrounds to access Cambridge and other competitive universities." Ucas found students who engaged the most in the scheme saw their results rise by a grade, were up to four times as successful in achieving A*s as their peers, and were almost twice as successful in securing a place at Oxbridge. Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. Uni science support for Covid-hit A-level students Girls in England lag behind boys in maths and science study England's pupils decline 'significantly' in science University of Cambridge
