Parents shun apprenticeships despite better earning power

Richard Vaughan covers the Sutton Trust’s latest Apprenticeship Polling, quoting Sir Peter Lampl in an article for iNews.

Parents are more likely to push their children to apply to university despite high level apprentices earning £50,000 more on average over a lifetime than many graduates.

Research published today by social mobility charity the Sutton Trust shows 31 per cent of parents would urge their children to go to university, as opposed to 27 per cent who would suggest an apprenticeship.

The gap increases when looking at professional and working class parents, with 42 per cent of professionals telling a YouGov survey they would advise going to university, compared with 23 per cent of working class parents.

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Sir Peter Lampl, founder of the Sutton Trust, said more work needed to be done to improve the prestige of apprenticeships in the UK, as is the case in Switzerland and Germany.

“The best apprenticeships offer young people outstanding career prospects and financial rewards,” he said. “However it’s clear that many parents just don’t know enough about apprenticeships to feel confident advising their child along that route.”

He added that more needed to be done to dispel the view apprenticeships are “not of high quality”.

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Get the full story or read our latest Apprenticeship Polling.