Celebrating the success of Essex's apprenticeships

During National Apprenticeship Week (9-16 February) we are shining a light on one of the University of Essex’s most impactful areas of educational delivery – our higher and degree apprenticeship programmes.

National Apprenticeship Week offers the University the chance to recognise the achievements of our apprentices and colleagues across the University who teach, support and champion them.

Delivered across three schools, (HSC, SRES and CSEE) these programmes strive to meet the demand for work-integrated learning and are closely aligned with the skills needs of our region.

Through our provision of higher/degree apprenticeships, the University of Essex plays a vital role in strengthening our workforces and creating meaningful social impact.

The impact of apprenticeships: transforming careers and supporting public services

Our higher/degree apprenticeships represent one of the most transformative areas of our educational delivery, not only for businesses and industries but also for the individuals who study them. Studying a higher/degree apprenticeship at Essex requires balancing academic study, employment and personal commitments – not always easy, but our apprenticeships have a life changing impact as evidenced by these testimonials:

Andrea

Andrea studied on the Occupational Therapy (OT) Degree Apprenticeship, returning to learning 40 years after leaving school. She went on to be awarded Apprentice of the Year 2024, gained promotion and is now working as a Specialist Occupational Therapist. She credits the apprenticeship with giving her the confidence, qualifications and career progression she once believed were out of reach.

Read more about Andrea's story 

Jenny

As another OT apprentice, Jenny embraced the apprenticeship route as a way to advance her NHS career while continuing to work and care for her family. Her dedication not only led to a 2:1 and a promotion, but also to the Apprentice of the Year Award 2025 and a nomination for the East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust “Rising Star” award. She credits the apprenticeship for opening up new areas of practice for her and expanding her career horizons.

Read more about Jenny's story

Luke

Luke joined Essex in 2024 and found the apprenticeship perfectly suited his preferred learning style. His studies helped him build the clinical and academic confidence needed to qualify as a Rotational Occupational Therapist. Reflecting on his apprenticeship, he describes the programme as instrumental in helping him “fulfil my dream role in the NHS.”

Read more about Luke's story

These testimonials clearly demonstrate how apprenticeships not only support critical workforce needs (many of our apprenticeships are in areas where there are national skills shortages) but also how they empower individuals in their professional development – often in ways not afforded to them by traditional study routes.

Apprenticeships can help remove significant barriers to studying at higher / degree level, mitigating such factors as full time employment, financial obligations and caring responsibilities. Nevertheless, while they make starting and accessing study at these levels more achievable, the academic and professional demands still remain rigorous and require sustained commitment.

Strong Achievement and Degree Outcomes

And we are so proud of our apprentices. They bring remarkable dedication to their studies and the results of that hard work speak for themselves. In 2024/25 we saw an 88% overall apprenticeship achievement rate with 2 apprenticeship standards seeing 100% success.

Degree outcomes are equally impressive with all 8 of the Speech and Language Therapy apprentices receiving a first class degree and 127 apprentices achieving a 2:1/Merit or First/Distinction.

These outcomes not only testify to the apprentices’ hard work, but also bear evidence of the efforts and synergistic collaboration between our School academic/professional services teams, the Apprenticeship Hub and the employers/workplace mentors.

Looking Ahead: A Moment to Celebrate and a Foundation to Build On

So, what’s next? As we celebrate all things apprenticeship this week we are also looking to the future. With apprenticeships receiving increasing recognition at Government level, our higher and degree apprenticeships offer the potential to contribute powerfully to the University’s future – creating opportunities, transforming careers and supporting the communities we serve.