A new resource for parents of school leavers has been launched, in response to research showing they know surprisingly little about the options available to their children.
Last week, AllAboutSchoolLeavers added a ‘Parents’ section to its website, providing essential information about all the school leaver options available to young people, including apprenticeships and school leaver programmes.
AllAboutSchoolLeavers’ recently published School & College Leaver annual research report revealed glaring gaps in parents' understanding of these alternatives to university, even though 81% of students said they go to their parents and guardians for career advice.
A shocking 60% of parents were unable to define “Higher Apprenticeship”, believing it to be equivalent to GCSEs. 28% said that they didn’t want their child to do an apprenticeship, even though over half were unsure of what an apprenticeship was.
The majority of parents and guardians said they want their children to go to university, because they think it offers the best career prospects - ignoring the advantages of other options.
This is despite the recent national focus on apprenticeships. The Government has pledged to create 3 million new apprenticeships by 2015, and allocated £2.3 billion to the adult skills sector in the 2015 budget.
There has also been a sharp increase in the number of apprenticeship since 2014, and they were recently given the same legal status as degrees.
The report showed that online resources are the most helpful to parents -90% use Google or careers websites to access information – so the new resource should be a useful tool.
Divided into 12 parts, it includes essential advice on apprenticeships, school leaver programmes, university, sponsored degrees and gap years, as well as guidance on finances and budgeting.
AllAboutSchoolLeavers hopes to broaden the views of parents and keep them properly informed, so they can advise their children appropriately about all the school leaver options available.
At a time when tuition fees are high and the job market is unsteady, it’s more important than ever that young people are aware of all the exciting choices out there.
