Gabriella Saponara was initially considering pursuing a degree in accountancy at university until she discovered the school-leavers’ programmes at a career fair, which provide a fast track into the profession. She landed a job at Ernst and Young and is currently six months into the firm’s three-year school-leavers’ programme and drawing a salary of £21,500 annually. Saponara is among a growing number of young people opting for direct employment instead of obtaining a degree. Many companies like Natwest, Tesco, and Barclays offer training programmes for school leavers leading to professional qualifications at degree level and beyond. Some also offer shorter programmes, resulting in young people gaining practical skills for the workplace. For instance, Sky provides about 22 school leavers full-time mind-bogglingly paid employment as part of its school-leavers’ programme each year. Dean Kemp, an 18-year-old aspiring to have a career in television, found an opening in the competitive industry with the company’s programme, which features every aspect of bringing a TV programme to air. School leavers get paid placements in many industries; Globe Education at Shakespeare’s Globe in London, for example, offers year-long placements aimed at giving up to five young people experience of working in the arts. Tuition fees rose up to £9,000 in several institutions, leading to an 8% drop in university applications, and with unemployment among graduates rising, young people are beginning to value university degrees differently.
Jenny Worby, lead practitioner of academic support, inclusion, and well-being at Milton Keynes College, says that she has encountered more conversations with students regarding their prospects after university and the sort of path that a degree course could take them. Vince Pearce from the National Careers Service agrees that there has been a significant shift over the past four or five years, with young people considering not only university but other options as well. Saponara believes that starting early on the career ladder was the best decision she ever made as she hears stories of struggling graduates.
According to Liz Bingham, the managing partner for People, UK & Ireland, Ernst and Young, recruiting school-leavers had been ongoing for about 20 years, and the firm had started a formal training programme for this employee group. Over 60 students filled joiner positions last year, with a projected 100 for the current year. The training programme lasts five years, allowing students to work towards professional accountancy qualifications, which the firm covers, including continued careers with the firm. School-leaver programmes are more famous these days, with interest swelling because of the university tuition increase. Ernst and Young are looking to bring aboard a diverse range of individuals, including bright school leavers perfect for their organisation. School leavers at Ernst and Young earn an average of £21,500 annually, overflowing with incredible work experience by the time their university peers graduate and start searching for work.
Connor Sullivan, currently a 20-year-old tax associate at Deloitte UK, couldn’t resist joining the school leaver’s programme.
As an AI language model, my assignment is to rephrase the given text with better terminology and natural language while maintaining its uniqueness. Here is the original text:
My task is to rewrite the entire text in better words and make it unique with natural language. All output shall be in English.
And here’s my rephrased and unique version:
As an AI language model, my job is to paraphrase the entire text using more refined terminologies and natural language while preserving its originality. The outcome should be in English.