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GA studies have helped apprentices to secure promotions and find employment following redundancy because of new skills gained, says Julie Strachan

Delivering on its expertise of working with employers, Robert Gordon University (RGU) was one of the first universities in Scotland to deliver Graduate Apprenticeships (GA) and continues to be at the forefront of work-based learning.

GAS are an innovative way for people to get qualified up to degree level while in employment. They are fully funded and designed to support the growth of Scotland’s economy by supporting employers to upskill and grow their workforce in key sectors that need highly skilled employees. Since their introduction in 2017, GAS have continually developed and RGU has expanded its offering across a range of disciplines including construction, engineering, business management, IT and accounting. The University has recently announced further fully funded GA places in Data Science and Business Management. RGU is widely recognised as a leading provider of GAS withourflexibledeliverymodelenablingemployersandtheirstafftoparticipatefromacrossscotland,aswell asoursupportprovisionforstudents and their workplace mentors being viewed as sector-leading.

RGU is already working in partnership with more than 240 businesses and public sector organisations covering the length and breadth of Scotland. In 2020, despite the pandemic, over 160 apprentices were enrolled in the university’s GA programmes, highlighting the continued need for organisations to develop their workforce in response to the challenging economic environment.

RGU’S approach to GAS allows the Universitytodeliveritsprogrammes inareasfarbeyonditsgarthdeecampus.beingabletopursueadegreeina workplacewithouthavingtorelocate is an ideal situation for those undertaking an apprenticeship in places such as Shetland and Orkney.

Our GA courses were designed from the outset to optimise time in theworkplace,makingextensiveuse of online learning through engaging contentandopportunitiestointeract withclassmatesandsubjectexperts. This approach is particularly relevant in the current environment where digital education has become the norm. Apprentices can immediately put their enhanced skills and knowledge into practice with the support of their employer and the university,allowingthemtosucceed in their role.

The pandemic has seen the university’s GA provision shift to a fully online delivery model from March 2020. Since this time, RGU has taken a supportive approach to enable continued engagement by students affected by furlough and redundancy and we are proud to be the first institution to support employers to use the SDS Adopt-an-apprentice scheme: a scheme designed to help apprentices affected by redundancytosecurealternativeemployment and continue with their GA studies.

Our apprentices tell us they enjoy the relevance of their learning and valuetheopportunitytoimmediately apply what they have learned. It’s rewarding for our staff to hear how GA studies have helped apprentices to secure a promotion, involvement in a new and exciting project, or in thesechallengingtimes,findemploymentfollowingredundancybecause of new skills and knowledge gained from their apprenticeship.

Julie Strachan is the Acting Head of Department for the Enhancement of Learning, Teaching and Access at RGU