A trailblazer group which is pushing to get a foundation degree included in a Level 5 apprenticeship wants to hear from employers.
The group is consulting on a proposal that students on the Level 5 apprenticeship Early Years Lead Practitioner standard achieve both the apprenticeship and a foundation degree, which is two thirds of an honours degree.
The trailblazer group, tasked with developing apprenticeship standards, believes delivering both qualifications together is ‘vital’, according to documents seen by Nursery World.
They say that ‘to ensure this apprenticeship standard achieves the desired outcomes of raising quality, enhancing career prospects and attracting talent to the early years sector, a foundation degree must be mandated to the apprenticeship standard.’ However, the body which approves apprenticeships is understood to be resistant.
‘The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education are concerned that a practitioner enrolled on the Level 5 apprenticeship will be incapable or uninterested in completing a foundation degree level programme as the Government only mandate a Level 3 qualification for practitioner status,’ say the trailblazers in the consultation.
‘Unfortunately due to the current recruitment crisis most job adverts for leaders, deputies, managers or lead practitioners do not specify a foundation degree, so we cannot prove that employers want this level..
‘The IFA has understood this and agreed to take on board the results of a survey’, they add.
A foundation degree provides the holder with ‘credits’ towards the full degree qualification.
Without it, the apprenticeship would not enable the apprentice to access higher education at this level.
The group also says the degree must be a formally mandated, rather than optional, part of the apprenticeship in order to attract sufficient funding.
See consultation:
