Apprenticeships in the UK have traditionally been a route for young people into manual technician level occupations, which are generally lower paid jobs than positions requiring university degrees for entry. Recent years have seen a wider range of apprenticeships becoming available and also increasing provision at higher education level. The Business, Administration and Law sector accounted for 29% of apprenticeship starts in 2014/15 and the proportion of adult apprentices is also growing.

The average gap between the lifetime earnings potential of university graduates and level 4 apprentices (EQF level 5) is 1.8% which makes the Lifetime Earning Premium (LEP) just £2 200. The LEP is the additional earnings potential of graduates and level 4 apprentices over a lifetime, in comparison to employees whose highest qualification is the academic upper secondary A-levels. The LEP is higher for apprentices than university graduates in the Arts, Media and Publishing and the Agriculture, Horticulture and Animal Care sectors in particular, but also to a smaller extent in Social Sciences and Languages, Literature and Culture. The rise in university tuition fees, while apprentices are paid during their training, also contributes to closing the LEP gap and may encourage more people to start an apprenticeship in the coming years.

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http://www.newsroom.barclays.com/r/3385/