National Apprenticeship Week 2024

Have you ever considered how a Civil Service Apprenticeship could support you in your development and take your career to the next level?

National Apprenticeship Week, taking place from 5–11th February, is your perfect opportunity to explore all of the Civil Service Apprenticeship opportunities available from Level 3 all the way up to Level 7 (Master’s Degree).

This year’s theme is ‘Skills for Life’ — showcasing how apprenticeships can help you develop the skills and knowledge required for a rewarding career by equipping you with future-ready skills. This aligns with the Civil Service’s future ambitions to optimise apprenticeships to enhance our workforce and lead the way in developing sought-after skills for our future world of work.

If you would like to find out more about apprenticeship vacancies, take a look on the Gov.uk Find an Apprenticeship site, where all live vacancies are listed. You can also find out more about apprenticeships on the Civil Service Careers page. Apprenticeships are available in a wide variety of Profession areas including HR, Leadership & Management, Engineering, STEM, Finance, Project Delivery, Commercial and many more- there is something for everyone.

Maya Goddard, a Ministry of Defence Level 5 HR People Professional apprentice, shares her experience on her programme so far…

Having already completed a Business Administration Level 3 apprenticeship, when I investigated specialising within HR, I knew that an apprenticeship would be the right route for me. After discussing the opportunity with my line manager, I decided that the Level 5 People Professional would fit well alongside my role. The application process was quick and easy, and just over 3 months later I attended my cohort induction.

I am now 2 months into my 25-month learning journey, and it has been enjoyable so far! The first few apprenticeship assignments are designed to get you back into learning, which I have found massively beneficial, but I’m looking forward to starting the first CIPD assignment in the next couple of months. Even though I am at the early stages of the apprenticeship, I have no doubts that this will support my professional development and growth within my role.

There are several support functions in place to help apprentices through their studies including their line managers, allocated skills coach, Apprenticeship Teams, as well as networks and groups that you can set up with others in your cohort. It has been invaluable being able to bounce off questions, concerns and thoughts to my peers who are at the same stage of learning as me. I spend a lot of time communicating with prospective and current learners, so it has been a great first-hand experience to work alongside the same process that our apprentices go through.

If you are looking to take the next step in your career and want to gain a qualification that helps you to build professional skills and experience, I would highly recommend looking at the apprenticeships on offer in the Civil Service!