Is there an optimum age to be an apprentice? For most people, their image of an apprentice would be a teenage school leaver. Yet, in England, the majority of apprentices are over the age of 19 when they start their apprenticeship, and 40 per cent are 25 or over. This would be very unusual in other European countries. In this article, the authors…

The British government's Modern Apprenticeship initiative has the following features: adoption of the best aspects of traditional apprenticeship, links with National Vocational Qualifications, breadth, and industry ownership. Key issues in the design of learning include holistic approaches to the attainment of occupational competence; effective…