Information for Employers

Bring a wealth of knowledge, skills, and fresh thinking into your organisation

At Warwick, degree apprentices can learn from some of the world’s best researchers, while benefiting from our close relationships with significant industry partners, and from the varied perspectives of their peers from other organisations. This collaborative approach to generating ideas and dedicated time to focus, means they can contribute to finding innovative solutions to key challenges facing your organisation. Business challenges will always be present, which is why we will work closely with you to identify contextualised skills and training solutions that meet your ever-changing business environment. We create an individualised learning plan for all our apprentices, which involves the apprentice undertaking an individual project that adds value where you need it.

We pride ourselves on building a close relationship between teachers, degree apprentices and employers, and hold regular review meetings between line manager, apprentice, and the apprentice tutor from their department. These are an opportunity to discuss progress, and to ensure the apprentice is developing skills and understanding that are relevant skills to their working role.

Currently, for reasons of apprentice safety, the University does not allow applicants to enrol who are under the age of 18 on 1 September during the year that the apprenticeship starts.

Download Employer's Guide to Degree Apprenticeships Enquiry form

Benefits of hiring an apprentice Apprenticeship Structure Flexible Apprenticeships Funding an apprentice Helping you to hire an Apprentice Employer Stories FAQ's Apprenticeship Subcontracting Policy APTEM

Benefits of hiring an apprentice

Address skills gaps
Attract new talent
Upskill your workforce
Increase productivity
Improve staff retention
Enhance innovation

Our Degree Apprenticeship courses

Flexible apprenticeships

Warwick have contributed to two new manuals, co-authored by Industry and Government, to set out how flexibilities in apprenticeships can be used and delivered in construction and health and social care, to meet the needs of employers and apprentices.
Some employers are already making use of apprenticeship flexibilities and are seeing the benefits of this, in workforce satisfaction, productivity, and improved value for money.

Construction - our Civil and Infrastructure Engineering degree apprenticeship offers block release training, giving apprentices concentrated periods to focus on academic learning and extended periods in the workplace to put new knowledge and skills into practice. There is also flexible learning for more experienced individuals who are able to build on their existing skills and complete more quickly.

Health and Social Care - our Social Work degree apprenticeshipLink opens in a new window offers day release, allowing apprentices to manage their academic study and caseload commitments effectively.

Both offer flexible learning for more experienced individuals who are able to build on their existing skills and complete more quickly.

Helping you to hire an apprentice

We will help you identify minimum educational or experience requirements and establish whether you’d like to upskill your existing workforce or take on new talent. If your ambition is to recruit new talent into the organisation, then we can ensure that your opportunities reach high-calibre candidates.

Our Degree Apprenticeships Team are here to support you through every stage of the process, from recruitment and selection, to guiding you through your contractual responsibilities and enrolling your apprentices onto the degree programme.

We’ll discuss your organisational requirements to ensure that we meet your needs as an employer, in the development of your apprentices to meet the current and future challenges of your business. You will be given a dedicated skills and training expert who will continue to support you throughout the duration of the apprenticeship.

Funding an apprentice

Apprenticeships and Funding Support

Apprenticeships are designed to be an accessible and cost-effective way for employers to develop new and existing talent. Government funding plays a central role in this through mechanisms such as levy payments, co-investment, and additional support payments for eligible apprentices. Employers may also benefit from targeted government incentives, particularly when supporting young people, care leavers, or those requiring additional support. There are certain instances where employers may be eligible for additional government support when hiring apprentices. These are primarily aimed at young apprentices, care leavers, and individuals with additional needs. Full details can be found within the 2026 to 2027 Apprenticeship Funding Rules.

Apprenticeship Levy

The Apprenticeship Levy (now operating within the wider Growth and Skills Levy framework) is a UK tax introduced to support apprenticeship training. Employers with an annual pay bill of more than £3 million are required to contribute 0.5% of their pay bill, minus a £15,000 annual allowance.

Organisations with an annual pay bill below £3 million do not pay the levy and instead access apprenticeship funding through the non-levy funding model.

From 1 August 2026, apprenticeship funding arrangements changed:

For apprentices aged 16 to 24 employed by non-levy paying employers, the government will fund 100% of apprenticeship training and assessment costs, up to the funding band maximum.
For apprentices aged 25 and overemployed by non-levy paying employers, the government will fund 95% of the training cost, with the employer contributing the remaining 5% through co-investment.
Levy-paying employers whose apprenticeship service account funds have been exhausted will not be required to pay the 25% co-investment contribution for eligible new apprentice starts aged 16 to 24. Instead, the government will fund the full cost of training and assessment up to the funding band maximum for these apprentices.

From 1 October 2026, the government is introducing a new £2,000 Apprenticeship Hiring Payment for non-levy paying employers who recruit a new apprentice aged 16 to 24.

To be eligible:

The apprentice must have joined the employer within the previous 90 days before the start of their apprenticeship programme.
The first payment of £1,000 will be made after the apprentice has completed their first 90 days on programme.
A second payment of £1,000 will normally be made after approximately 365 days, subject to the apprentice remaining in learning.

Additional Payments

The employer and training provider will each receive an additional £1,000 payment towards the cost of supporting the apprenticeship if, at the start of the apprenticeship, the apprentice is:

Aged 16 to 18 years old (or 15 years old where their 16th birthday falls between the last Friday in June and 31 August); or

Aged 19 to 24 years old and has an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan; or
Aged 19 to 24 years old and is, or has previously been, in the care of their local authority.

Care Leaver Bursary

Apprentices are eligible to receive a £3,000 bursary if they are, or have previously been, in the care of a UK local authority. This payment is made directly to the apprentice to support them during their apprenticeship programme.

For further information, please visit the 2026 to 2027 Apprenticeship Funding Rules.

Apprenticeship structure

Generally, Level 6 degree apprenticeships last between three and five years and Level 7 degree apprenticeships lasts two to three years. The length varies depending on the course.

Apprentices spend 80 percent of their time learning on-the job and the remaining 20 percent training off-the-job studying towards their degree.

On-the-job learning

As apprentices are in full-time employment, most of their training takes place in the workplace. The 80 percent of their time learning on-the-job covers the job specific tasks that the apprentice would complete during their regular working hours.

Off-the-job training

Off-the-job training is defined as learning undertaken outside of an apprentice’s normal working environment, this can include training delivered at the apprentice’s normal place of work but must not be delivered as part of their normal working duties. Off-the-job training must equate to a minimum of 20 percent of the apprentice’s total working hours.

Studies will usually take place through either day release or block release a week at time spread throughout the year, depending on the course. Apprentices will also study using our Virtual Learning Environment meaning they can learn from their home, office or further afield at a time that suits them.

Employer stories

"My experience working with University of Warwick has been first class to date. Having worked with several universities and experienced various levels of apprenticeship delivery, I would rank Warwick highly."

Emerging Talent Development Partner, J. Murphy & Sons Limited

"University of Warwick has been a brilliant training provider to work with. They have been on hand right from advertising the apprenticeship vacancies, helping to facilitate with interviews and providing excellent support to our apprentices throughout their course".

Apprenticeship Programme Manager, Laing O’Rourke

"We have had a very good experience with the degree apprenticeship programme at the University of Warwick with regards to training for Advanced Critical Care Practitioners with two of our trainees now qualified and two further trainees starting the course. The trainees are well supported throughout. "

Dr Matthew Martin
Consultant - Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine

FAQs

What is an apprenticeship standard? Do I have an eligible role?

To be able to offer an apprenticeship the following rules must apply:

You must have a genuine job and be able to offer an employment contract long enough for the apprentice to successfully complete their apprenticeship
The role must enable the apprentice to gain the knowledge, skills and behaviours set out in the Apprenticeship Standard
The apprentice must have appropriate support from within the organisation to carry out their job role
A minimum of 20 percent of their time must be spent training off-the-job
The cost of the apprentices’ wage must be met by you

Who is eligible for a Degree Apprenticeship?

Currently, for reasons of apprentice safety, the University does not allow applicants to enrol who are under the age of 18 on 1 September during the year that the apprenticeship starts.

To apply for a degree apprenticeship, the government require the apprentice to:

Have left full time education when the apprenticeship starts
Have the right to work in the UK and ensure any visa is valid for the duration of the whole degree apprenticeship
Have achieved GCSE Mathematics and English at grade 4/C or equivalent before completing the apprenticeship
Meet one of the below residency requirements:

- UK nationals - UK nationals are eligible for funding if they have been ordinarily resident in the UK, the British Overseas Territories, or Crown Dependencies (Channel Islands and Isle of Man) for at least the previous three years before the start of the apprenticeship.

- UK nationals in the EEA - UK nationals who have been living in the EEA prior to their apprenticeships are eligible for funding if they have been ordinarily resident in the EEA for at least the previous three years before the start of the apprenticeship; or, have been ordinarily resident in a combination of the UK and EEA for at least the previous three years before the start of the apprenticeship.

- EEA nationals in the UK - Irish nationals are eligible for funding if they have been ordinarily resident in the UK, Ireland, or the EEA for at least the previous three years before the start of the apprenticeship.

- All other EEA nationals are eligible for funding if they have obtained either pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme; and have been ordinarily resident in the EEA, Gibraltar, or the UK for at least the previous three years before the start of the apprenticeship.

- Please note there are other residency criteria that cover a range of individual circumstances, for example family members of UK and EEA nationals. Please contact the Apprenticeships Team at if you feel the above points have not covered your situation.

Each apprenticeship will also have specific academic entry requirements set by the University and the employer which you would also need to achieve.

Contact our Apprenticeships Team for further details about the flexibility of these and our other apprenticeship programmes

apprenticeships@warwick.ac.uk