Why half of parents think an apprenticeship is better than a university degree

Public shown to be clearly in favour of more vocational education and apprenticeships

Nearly half of parents would prefer their child study an apprenticeship than attend university, a new study has found.

A total of 48 per cent said they would opt for an apprenticeship if they had to choose, while 40 per cent said university would be preferable. The findings have emerged from research by the Policy Institute at King’s College London.

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The study also found 31 per cent of the UK public overall now say a university education is not worth the time and money it usually takes – up from 18 per cent in 2018.

In Scotland, where local undergraduates do not pay tuition fees, 18 per cent of respondents said they still had a significant amount of debt relating to their time at university, compared to a 30 per cent figure for the UK as a whole.

A total of three quarters of people said they wanted greater opportunities for apprenticeships, rising to 81 per cent in the Scotland sample - more than double the proportion who said they wanted greater opportunities to go to university.

In Scotland, graduate apprenticeships were launched in 2017/18, and are offered in key occupational growth areas of the economy, via many universities.

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Modern apprenticeships, which provide paid employment and the opportunity to train for jobs to anyone over 16, are also available, as are foundation apprenticeships, which offer work-based learning for about 2,500 pupils in S5 or S6.

University degrees were still considered beneficial by most respondents to the King’s College study, with 84 per cent saying it was worth it for the academic knowledge and skills they gained, 78 per cent for the experiences they had as a student, and 81 per cent for the overall experience, rising to 83 per cent in the Scottish sample.   Two-thirds said their degree was worth it for the friends they made while studying and for finding jobs and advancing their career, although nearly a third said it did not boost their job prospects.   Nine in ten graduates meanwhile said they would go to university if given the choice again.

The findings have emerged amid a fresh debate over the future of Scottish and UK universities and the way they are funded, as some struggle to balance their books amid growing financial pressures.

Bobby Duffy, professor of public policy and director of the Policy Institute at King’s College, said a “key message” from the research was while universities are highly valued, they are not enough to meet all needs, with the public clearly in favour of more vocational education and apprenticeships.

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Alison Wolf, professor of public sector management at King’s College, said: “The public understands the value of universities and graduates are positive about the experience, but there is evidence here of growing scepticism about some of what universities do and whether they alone are enough. 

“People do not see them as the most important priority for education spending: our findings confirm and build on other evidence that support for apprenticeships ranks higher. All of this will, inevitably, feed into government decisions and underlines the need to think hard about how – not whether – our university system should develop and change.”

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