Iain Hawker - Assistant Principal, Fife College and Heather Tytler - Area Manager, Skills Development Scotland, launch the new scholarship.
A new scholarship, for school pupils studying Foundation Apprenticeships, has been launched this week by Fife College to help pupils take their next step.
The ‘Foundation Apprenticeship Advancement Scholarship’ is being offered by the Adam Smith Foundation, which manages the College’s scholarship programme, and is aimed at pupils who are keen to secure a Modern Apprenticeship (MA) after leaving school.
The scholarships of £500 per person will be awarded to successful apprentices to support their expenditure whilst they study on items such as travel, equipment including tools, clothing or other items such as a laptop which will prove useful in supporting pupils to move on to a MA programme.
The new scholarship was appropriately launched at an Apprenticeships Fair held at Viewforth High School in Kirkcaldy on Thursday (7 March) during Scottish Apprenticeship Week. The event was organised by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) Fife to help parents, carers and young people discover the benefits of apprenticeships.
Alongside Fife College, a range of employers attended the event from a variety of industries to discuss career pathways and apprenticeship opportunities.
Iain Hawker, Assistant Principal at Fife College, was delighted to announce details of the new scholarship at the event and said: “Scottish Apprenticeship Week is all about highlighting the many benefits of apprenticeships and this year’s theme is ‘Skills for the Future’ recognising the importance of investing in our workforce.
“We are delighted to launch our new Foundation Apprenticeship Scholarship which will support pupils and help them make a smooth transition on to an MA programme so they can secure those much needed skills and a great future career.
“Foundation Apprenticeships, which are at the same level of study as a higher (SCQF Level 6), are a great qualification option and this new scholarship adds to the many benefits of choosing a Foundation Apprenticeship while at school.”
Heather Tytler, Area Manager at Skills Development Scotland said:
“I am delighted at the announcement of a scholarship to support a young person’s progression from a Foundation Apprenticeship to a Modern Apprenticeship with Fife College.
“The apprenticeship family of qualifications offer a fantastic alternative to full time education either in school, college or university with the opportunity to achieve the same level of qualifications in a work based setting. This means young people gain the important skills required by employers alongside the academic qualifications and earn at the same time. It really is a win-win situation for everyone.”
John Paterson, Chair and Trustee of the Adam Smith Foundation, is delighted to support this new scholarship and said: “The Adam Smith Foundation offers hundreds of scholarships to Fife College students each year to support them in their studies or help them progress on to further study, university or employment. This new scholarship is our first which supports school pupils looking to move on to further study and training. We are delighted to be able to play a helping hand in their career journey to support the workforce of tomorrow.”
Pupils eligible to apply for the new scholarship include those who are enrolled with Fife College in the final year of their Foundation Apprenticeship in session 2019/20 and who are studying one of the following subjects: Accountancy; Business; Civil Engineering; Engineering; Scientific Technologies (Lab Skills); Food and Drink Technologies; Software Development; Creative and Digital Media; Hardware and System Support.
Foundation Apprenticeships are open to senior phase pupils at all secondary schools in Fife. They allow pupils to learn the skills they need for the future, work on real work-based projects, open up options after school and make pupils’ college and UCAS applications stand out from the crowd - all while still at secondary school.
Fife College and the Adam Smith Foundation hope to launch further scholarships to support Foundation Apprentices in the near future.
For further details about Foundation Apprenticeships visit our page, or call 0344 248 0115. For further details about scholarships visit our page or email scholarships@fife.ac.uk
