Apprentice FAQs

Degree and Higher Apprenticeships (DA/HA) are collaboratively developed by employers, universities, and professional bodies. These programmes blend practical work experience with part-time university study, allowing apprentices to earn a full Bachelor's or Master's degree as part of their apprenticeship.

Degree and Higher Apprenticeships (DA/HA) comprise two qualifications: an academic qualification, either undergraduate or postgraduate, and an apprenticeship as defined by Skills England.

Throughout the DA/HA apprenticeship, apprentices will gain the technical knowledge, practical experience, and broader skills needed for their current job and future career. This is achieved through a combination of workplace learning, formal off-the-job training, and opportunities to practice new skills in a real work environment.

Northumbria University has once again been recognised as one of the top universities in the UK after being awarded the title of Modern University of the Year 2025 by The Times and The Sunday Times. It marks an impressive and sustained run of national recognition for Northumbria University in recent years. In 2022 Northumbria was crowned Times Higher Education’s University of the Year, the most prestigious accolade in the UK higher education sector.

 

Northumbria University’s Degree and Higher Apprenticeships are shaped by world-leading research, and created in consultation with students, employers and professional, statutory and regulatory bodies. Integrating theory and practice, Degree and Higher Apprenticeships build upon the University’s innovative approach to work-based learning.

 

Northumbria University collaborate with organisations to create a workforce development portfolio that aligns with their needs, objectives, and strategy. For larger cohorts, the University can offer closed programs, and tailor the content specifically to the organisation.

 

 

Degree and Higher Apprenticeships, funded through apprenticeship levy payments or government funding, are designed to enhance organisational effectiveness by equipping new and existing employees with relevant skills and qualifications.

Organisations invest in talent development and apprenticeships to:

• Address skill gaps within the workforce
• Upskill employees to deal with future challenges and drive productivity gains
• Increase staff motivation and loyalty
• Provide an attractive offer to recruit high calibre talent
• Ensure staff meet regulatory standards and are up to date with sector knowledge
• Enable internal workforce development ahead of costly external recruitment

To apply, apprentice candidates must:

• Be employed for a minimum of 30 hours per week (or have a job offer meeting this requirement) in a role related to the Degree or Higher Apprenticeship they wish to pursue, enabling them to acquire the technical knowledge, practical experience, and broader skills and behaviours aligned with the apprenticeship standard. This is a Northumbria entry requirement; apprentices working fewer hours may still be funding-eligible under a longer, adjusted apprenticeship duration. Employers must be willing to support their candidates for the full duration of the Apprenticeship. You can find more details here.

• Meet the residency criteria set out in the apprenticeship funding rules, which generally require at least 3 years' ordinary residence in the UK, Islands, Gibraltar, or a qualifying EEA/Switzerland/Irish route (criteria vary by nationality). Full details are set out in Annex A of the Apprenticeship funding rules: 2026 to 2027 on GOV.UK.

• Be existing members of staff or new recruits.

• Meet the standard entry requirements of their chosen programme, which vary depending on the course. Full details on Northumbria's entry requirements can be found within the entry requirements section on the relevant course page.

• Meet the English and Maths requirement for the course. Some of our degree apprenticeship programmes ask for a GCSE grade C/4 (or equivalent) in English and/or Maths as part of entry — this varies by course, so check the specific programme page for what's needed. If a candidate doesn't yet hold a required qualification, government funding rules mean we may be able to support them to study towards it alongside their apprenticeship:
  • Apprentices aged 16–18: this support is compulsory and fully funded — they must work towards the qualification as part of the programme.
  • Apprentices aged 19+: this support is optional and only funded if you, as the employer, agree to include it in the training plan.
  • Either age: if English or Maths is a required part of the specific apprenticeship standard itself (not just our course entry criteria), it must be completed regardless of age.

Get in touch and we'll confirm what applies for your candidate's course and age.

• Must spend a minimum of 50% of their time working on projects based in England, as required by the apprenticeship funding rules.

Eligibility is governed by the Apprenticeship funding rules: 2026 to 2027, published and administered by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

As part of the application process, all apprentice candidate applications will undergo an initial skills assessment to evaluate their existing knowledge, skills, and behaviours against those required for occupational competences in the apprenticeship standard and the academic award they are applying for. All learning for an apprenticeship should be new learning. As a result, the length of programme of study may change if eligible for recognition of prior learning or experience.

Whether your apprentice needs to complete an English and Maths qualification depends on their age at the start of the apprenticeship, not on the level of the course. In practice, for our degree and higher apprenticeships this comes down to whether they're 18 or 19 and over at the start.

• If your apprentice is 18 when they start: they must work towards and achieve a level 2 qualification (equivalent to GCSE grade C or 4) in both English and Maths in order to complete their apprenticeship. This applies for the whole programme, even after they turn 19.

• If your apprentice is 19 or over when they start: this isn't a requirement to complete the apprenticeship. We can still arrange for them to study towards it, but only if you agree to include it in the training plan, it's your call as the employer.

If your apprentice doesn't already have these qualifications and needs them, we'll support them to get there through a specified provider.

Employers who pay the levy

If your annual wage bill is over £3 million, you pay 0.5% of it into your apprenticeship account, now called the Growth and Skills Levy, rather than the old Apprenticeship Levy. You can use these funds to cover the full cost of your apprentice's training and assessment.

One thing to be aware of, funds now expire after 12 months rather than 24, so it's worth planning your training spend more actively than in the past. If you don't use all or part of your levy pot, you can't claim it back as cash, and the government's previous 10% top up on levy funds has now been removed, so you'll only have access to what you actually pay in.

Employers who don't pay the levy

If your wage bill is under £3 million, you don't pay into the levy, but you can still get significant government funding towards training costs:

• If your apprentice is aged 16 to 24 when they start, the government funds 100% of the training and assessment costs.
• If your apprentice is aged 25 or over when they start, the government funds 95%, and you cover the remaining 5%.

Extra payments you could get

On top of the funding above, you may be able to claim:

• A £1,000 payment, paid to you and to your training provider, if, at the start of the apprenticeship, your apprentice is either aged 16 to 18, or aged 19 to 24 with an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan and/or care experience.
• A £2,000 hiring payment, from October 2026, if you don't pay the levy and recruit a new apprentice aged 16 to 24.
• A separate £3,000 care leavers' bursary, paid directly to the apprentice, not to you, if they are or have been in the care of a local authority, regardless of whether they also qualify for the £1,000 payment above.

For more information on higher and degree apprenticeship fees, funding and the levy please visit our Understanding the Apprenticeship Levy page which has further guidance and information.

A range of sectors offer Degree and Higher Apprenticeships which are bound by a specific Apprenticeship Standard. The Standard sets out the occupation/job role, what the apprentice will do and the Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours they will be required to demonstrate in order to complete the apprenticeship.

 

 

The Training Plan is a document signed by the University, the Employer, and the apprentice, and sets out how the apprentice will be supported to successfully achieve the intended outcomes of the apprenticeship.   

 

DfE Apprenticeship funding rules stipulate that the University must retain a signed training plan for every apprentice as it forms part of the apprentice evidence pack needed for the final award.  As it contains a GDPR statement, it is essential to have a copy before the University release any information to the employer about the apprentice’s progress or engagement with the programme.   

 

The Training Plan is intended to inform the regular progress review meetings which take place between the University Workplace Coach, employer mentor and apprentice. 

 

It is anticipated that the Training Plan is a ‘live’ document and will be reviewed periodically and updated as necessary on agreement with all parties. 

 

The document has been cross-referenced to the DfE Apprenticeship funding Rules and will be retained within the evidence pack stored alongside the contract and apprenticeship agreement. 

 

All apprentices must be employed in an appropriate job and be supported by their employer to spend at least 20% of their normal working hours aligned to the apprenticeship (referred to as Off the Job Training). OTJ must deliver new knowledge, skills and behaviours that are directly related to the apprenticeship standard.

Apprenticeships are work-based programmes, and all OTJ must take place within contracted hours.

Apprentices may choose to spend additional time training out of hours, but this is not a requirement of apprenticeships.

 

To ensure you are making the appropriate progress, regular (every 12 weeks) meetings are held between the you, your work-based mentor, and your university workplace coach to ensure appropriate progress is made, and any required support is available and in place.

The Gateway process sits between the on-programme delivery of the standard and the end- point assessment (EPA). The Gateway is a major milestone and is there to satisfy the requirement that the apprentice, their employer and the University agree that candidates are ready for EPA. Gateway is there to satisfy the requirements of the standard, and each standard will have specific gateway requirements.

 

Apprentices have a final assessment referred to as an end-point assessment (EPA), which is either part of the University credit structure (integrated) or in addition to the university credits (non-integrated), as prescribed by IfATE.

The EPA allows apprentices to demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and behaviours they have developed from their academic and professional learning against the competencies identified in the specific aligned standard. The EPA will be assessed by an independent assessor from the register of end-point assessment organisations. If candidates are successful in their EPA, they will be awarded the apprenticeship. Further details in relation to the EPA can be found here.

Since apprentices are in full-time employment, they do not have student status and are not eligible to apply for student finance.