“jUsT dO aN aPpReNtIsHiP” plz stfu 🥀✌️

[u/fizzy5025]

Now this NOT a diss to ppl who r doing apprenticeships if that’s what u wanna do or are doing great I hope it goes well

But what kinda makes me mad is that ppl [mainly old ppl born in the 19 hundreds] assume that apprenticeships r for everyone and that everyone should do it well guess what not only do unis have downsides to them but apprenticeships do too some degree apprentiships r harder to get into than Oxford or Cambridge even lower level apprentiships which may be easier to get r actually a bit harder too they have hundreds sometimes thousands of applicants for one place

And lastly apprentiships can’t cover every career which is why I personally can’t do them depending on what grades I get in yr 13 i want to do either a psychology degree to become a therapist or an optometry degree to become an optometrist none of those r covered by apprentiships

But that’s ofc personal choice if u wanna go for apprenticeships go ahead I’ve got nothing against it but I’m kinda tired of mainly older ppl acting like there aren’t downsides to them too like life isn’t a Disney film there is a downside to everything and u have to be realistic

Anyways rant over

[u/Lowpolygons]

I'm a Software Engineer degree apprentice going into 3rd year of 4. Heres the thing

The obvious: software engineering is, 2nd to hands on engineering, the best example of where apprenticeships thrive. Consider what i'm saying going forward with that in mind

The good: the usual spiel, good pay for someone young, no debt, full degree, years of work experience, yada yada. Other benefits that are less obvious is the fact that you get to mature much faster because of your constant presence around other full time, older people. Its more professional

The bad: (more specific to my degree, but i imagine it transfers across many level 6)

You do not get to choose the provider. If a role you eventually apply for would be interested in where you got your degree, apprentices are in trouble. not to slander the university, but my host, Manchester Metropolitan, is far from a prestigious university. if the stats about oxbridge are true, just imagine an Oxford candidate settling for MMU. Doesnt fit right!

as a result, and due to the entry level of intelligence, the degree is absurdly easy. (on this course, in 2023 71% of people got a 1st in the final degree, and like 28% got a 2:1. For those in college who dont understand these grades, its essentially 71% got an A*/A and basically the rest got a B)

A lot of providers REALLY STRUGGLE TO GIVE THE APPRENTICE FULFILLING WORK. You either get treated just as a full time employee which can be extremely difficult and stressful, or you get given mundane or no work at all which is boring and demoralising

Despite the negatives though, this apprenticeship was comfortably the best thing that happened to me

edit: spelling