Degree Apprenticeships (DAs) were introduced in the UK in 2015 as a novel alternative to traditional undergraduate programmes to obtaining a degree. DAs are marketed as a debt-free, vocational pathway into higher education, through a model that integrates higher learning and on-the-job training. DAs are funded by employers through the Apprenticeship Levy, that was introduced in 2017. They intended to support national economic growth, address low productivity and low investment in skills training, and meet higher-level skills shortages (DfE, 2020).
DAs have grown in scale and stature in the education sector, in policy, and in the public view. While the scale of these developments has stimulated innovative models of delivery and new and productive relationships between employers and education and training providers (ETPs), their growth has been identified as a source of disruption. There are concerns that increases in expensive DAs normally taken by employees already in the workforce is to the detriment of resourcing and support for apprenticeships to help young people enter the workforce. The potential capacity of DAs to act as instruments of social mobility has been simultaneously celebrated and questioned. Employers have raised concerns that the levy is insufficiently flexible to support their training needs.
In this seminar Andrea will present findings from a recently published research ‘Degree Apprenticeships in England: What can we learn from the experiences of apprentices, employers and education and training providers?’ unpacking the perceptions and experiences of key stakeholders. She will discuss the motivations of the different stakeholders, and the barriers and opportunities for engaging with DAs. This project was a collaboration of The Edge Foundation and the universities of Bath, Oxford, and Huddersfield.
Dr Andrea Laczik is Director of Research at the Edge Foundation and a Honorary Research Fellow at the Department of Education, University of Oxford. She has over 25 years of experience with education research and policy evaluation Her projects cover Vocational Education and Training (VET) and apprenticeships at all levels, 14-19 education, employer engagement in VET and general education, youth transition and trajectories and provisions for young people and adults from disadvantaged backgrounds. Her current projects include ‘Young Lives, Young Futures’ (funded by ESRC) that investigate the education and employment opportunities available to young people in different areas of England who don’t take the university route. Andrea also has an active interest in comparative and international research. Her most recent research reports include:
Tholen, G., Emms, K. and Laczik, A (2025, forthcoming). Beyond routine: the role of skills, education, and technology in middle-skill occupations. London: The Edge Foundation.
Dickson, M., Maguire, S., Ventura Alfaro, M., Laczik, A., Dabbous, D., Newton, O., and Thomson, D. (2025). Keeping young people in learning until they are 18 – does it work? Evidence from the Raising of Participation Age (RPA) in England. London: Nuffield Foundation.
Laczik, A., Patel, J., Emms, K., Hordern, J., Orr, K., Dabbous, D., Polding, E., Wormald, J., James Relly, S., Newton, O., Quyoum, A. (2025). Degree Apprenticeships in England: What Can We Learn from the Experiences of Apprentices, Employers, and Education and Training Providers? London: The Edge Foundation.
Kersh, N., Emms, K. and Laczik, A. (2025). Building bridges between higher education and employment: learning from practically-based higher education. London: The Edge Foundation. Pullen, C., McCaig, C., Emms, K. and Laczik, A. (2024) Widening participation and degree apprenticeships. London: The Edge Foundation.