National Apprenticeship Week: Employer consultation opened by PwC on first Higher Apprenticeship for Professional Services industry.
PwC has launched a consultation with employers in the accountancy, tax and consulting sectors to support and contribute to the development of the first Higher Apprenticeship for Professional Services.
HR and Recruitment Directors met for the first time to discuss the role of the programme in the sector, which deliver 1,500 Higher Apprenticeships across the professional services sector and beyond over the period to March 2015.
Distinct routes into the taxation, accountancy and management consultancy professions will be created, developed with the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAEW), Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) and the Management Consultancies Association(MCA), including close alignment with the requirements of the existing ATT and ICAEW professional qualifications at that level.
Employers can support the Apprenticeships by contributing to its development, providing training places, or both. A consultation will run until May, with contributions on what employers want to see included in the qualification submitted in person, online or via a working group. The full framework will be released in Autumn, with the first students beginning in September this year.
Sara Caplan, partner, PwC said: “ Higher Apprenticeships are an important opportunity for employers to be actively involved in building the pipeline of people joining our industry stronger and more diverse. Ultimately it will make an important contribution to building the business skills of our wider economy.”
“We want to attract as wide a range of views as possible on the role and structure of the qualifications, to design the programme that best meets our professions’ needs. A wide range of views will build a strong core programme allowing flexibility around it for individual businesses’ needs.”
The qualification will be equivalent to the first stages of the Higher Education ladder, and will quip Apprentices with a range of technical knowledge and broader business skills they need in the sector. Working with professional bodies and Higher Education, the programme will include structured progression pathways to bachelor’s degrees and beyond, and to Chartered status in accountancy and taxation.
Since 2008, interest in 'earn while you learn' routes to qualifying in the industry has dramatically increased. Applications to PwC’s existing school leaver entry programme, which has run for over ten years, are up over 300% since 2008.
Gaenor Bagley, head of people, PwC said “There’s definitely an appetite amongst employers and students for examining new routes into the profession that won’t compromise on career prospects, quality training and development.
“The involvement of the professional bodies – ATT, ICAEW and the MCA – is essential to the success of the programme, because it creates a credible, high quality offering and route to long term career development.”
“It is a hugely competitive recruitment market for business employers, despite the recession. Our experience in graduate and student recruitment tells us there is a huge prize to be gained for the industry from going beyond the tried and tested routes. We can attract new people, new views, and new experiences. Over time it could transform the diversity of the people we’re attracting.”
Stuart McKinnon, President, ATT said: “Traditionally apprenticeships have been seen by most people as primarily a route into trades like building and plumbing. This is valuable of course. However they can also be a path into white collar professions such as tax and accountancy. Traditional university degrees have a lot going for them but we want to show they are not the only gateway to the professions. We also believe this initiative has the potential to increase the diversity of the profession.”
Mark Protherough, Executive Director, Learning and Professional Development, ICAEW said: “It is important that we continue to maintain and develop non-University routes into the profession for talented individuals. Today around one in five of those studying to become an ICAEW Chartered Accountant chooses a non-University route and with the launch of the Higher Apprenticeship in Professional Services, this number is likely to increase”.
Alan Leaman, CEO of the MCA said: “Management consulting is a career of choice for many of the brightest and most talented young people. It is right that we look carefully at all routes into the industry to give tomorrow’s talent the opportunity to contribute.”
For more information:
PR and Communications Officer
Konstantinos Makrygiannis
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