Finding and securing an apprenticeship in 2021 – Apprenticeship How To…
The full guide on how to find and secure an apprenticeship in 2021…
So you’re thinking about starting an apprenticeship? Here is the full guide on finding an apprenticeship in 2021. This guide applies to almost every sector that we can think of and hopefully if you’re a bit stuck on what to do, now that you’ve chosen an apprenticeship over University or another form of further education, this will help to point you in the right direction for finding an apprenticeship.
Deciding on a sector or industry
You may have had an idea in your mind for a while of which type of career you would like as you get older, even if it’s just a vague one such as working outside or working with people for example. So the best place to start is the Institute for Apprenticeships. This website has the absolute A-Z, full range of apprenticeships on offer currently in the UK located under the Apprenticeship Standards tab. Through the Institute for Apprenticeships website you can search with keywords or phrases such as: work with cars, work with animals etc. and this will provide you with a list of all of the apprenticeships that cover those areas! Whether you’ve got an exact idea of what career you’d like to do, some sort of idea or absolutely no idea at all – it is well worth having a browse through the Institute for Apprenticeships Standards list as your very first step!
Checking what’s available in your local area
Once you’ve decided what apprenticeship it is that you’re interested in, you should check if there are any local current vacancies for that particular apprenticeship. The best place for finding an apprenticeship locally is on the Find an Apprenticeship website. (At the Apprenticeship Hub we also share a weekly updated list of new vacancies in the Solent and North Hampshire & Surrey region on our LinkedIn and Facebook!)
Head over to the Find an Apprenticeship webpage on the government website and you can search using multiple filters to help you. You can search using the title of the job you’re interested in, your location – including a ‘within this radius’ filter – and even what level you’re interested in. So if you are just about to complete your GCSE’s you might want to search for something around a level 3 for example. Then finally hit ‘Search’ and let the hundreds of results load up! Take some time to read through the job descriptions, the time frames, the locations and if you could travel to them easily, learn about what the employer does and keep an open mind about where a particular opportunity could lead you.
Creating a CV
Upon finding a few different vacancies that you could see yourself being happy in, it’s time to create your CV ready to send to these companies! Now we aren’t going to go into huge levels of detail here about CV building as we have created aCV building webinar a while back which can be viewedhereand also there are hundreds of thousands of fantastic detailed CV tutorials easily accessible across the web including this one from UCAS.
But some great general tips would be to:
- Include only relevant information such as qualifications, work experience and just a small summary of you. (As much as I’d like to hear about your dog, Teddy – your potential employer doesn’t.)
- Tailor the CV to each particular employer – this might mean changing bits here and there for each application you send but it’s worth doing and shows you pay attention to detail!
- As obvious as this sounds, have someone else read it! Checking for spelling and grammar mistakes might be dull but could be what gives you the leg up over another applicant.
Sending in your application
Now you’re ready to send off your application! Most vacancies shared on the Find an Apprenticeship website will have a link to where and how to send off your application, but if in doubt check the companies website or check theirLinkedInpage to see if they would like you to apply through one of those avenues.
And repeat!
Applying for jobs and finding an apprenticeship can sometimes be quite a long or slow process. This is why it’s worth choosing a handful of vacancies that pique your interest rather than just placing all of your hopes in one particular vacancy as it is likely to be popular with a number of other candidates looking to begin their apprenticeship journey!
Remember, don’t be disheartened if you don’t get the first few apprenticeships that you apply for, this is a learning process and it might just mean making some adjustments to your CV or interview strategy if you are invited for an interview. It is also worth getting in contact with a couple of training providers that offer the apprenticeship that you are interested in, as they will often be connected with companies that are looking for apprentices and may even recommend you.
What can the Apprenticeship Hub do for me?
If you are based in the Solent region or North Hampshire & Surrey, it is worth speaking to a member of the Apprenticeship Hub team. We may be able to help put you in contact with an employer who is searching for an apprentice just like you! Contact us by email: hello@theapprenticeshiphub.comor through the live chat on our website: www.theapprenticeshiphub.comor through any of our social media, we are on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter!
Best of luck!