Degree apprenticeships: a guide for higher education providers

Degree apprenticeships were first launched in 2015 as a key element of reforms to the apprenticeship system, designed to focus on areas where higher-level skills are needed in order to tackle the UK’s longstanding low productivity.

The Degree Apprenticeship Development Fund (DADF) was created in 2016, to:

• boost capacity and internal infrastructure within higher education
• embed high quality degree apprenticeships as an accepted alternative to traditional higher education
• boost productivity
• enable and encourage greater social mobility.

An evaluation of the Degree Apprenticeship Development Fund was commissioned by the Higher Education Funding Council for England to review the processes involved in the development of degree apprenticeships and the achievements of the DADF-funded projects. The evaluation report was released by the Office for Students in March 2019.