The world of work is sometimes frightening for anyone who has just completed several years of university or high school. However, in a system where education is always more theoretical rather than practical, an internship brings a new dimension to training that can often be more concrete and more professional.
Whether the summer intern contract lasts 6 months or the apprenticeship programme lasts 3 years, it is a question of opening a door to the business world for the student, in professions that are increasingly rich in learning.
From programme certificates of completion to diploma-like job qualifications, what kind of diplomas are supported in internships, work placements and apprenticeships? Keep reading to find out more
Do You Get a Certificate After Interning?
Retail, business, data, banking - internships are a great way to gradually enter the world of work.
There are generally three kinds of work contracts you can have for anyone that is considered a young adult. These three work contracts are:
- Internships
- Apprenticeships
- Work placements
As an aspiring intern, the best thing you can do is to make sure to do your research on what exactly an internship will give you with regard to certifications. The first thing you should know before snagging that summer dream job is to understand what exactly an intern will do.
Internships are short-term commitments for employees and last anywhere between a couple of weeks to 1 year. Typically, internship contracts are between 2 to 6 months. That is what makes intern programmes perfect for a summer job.
While employers will vary, it is generally considered that after the completion of an internship you will get some kind of evidence to prove that you’ve completed a work experience. This is more common in jobs that have some sort of technical expertise involved.
There are generally two types of certifications that you can get during or after an internship is over:
- External Certifications
- Certificate of Completion from your employer
External certifications are those that other companies give you after completing a certain amount of courses and/or passing an examination on the topics involved. Interns will often have access to programmes like Udemy or LinkedIn learning that will allow them to learn skills related to their role.
Employers typically pay for these services as well as for the interns' examination. Some examples of external certifications are:
- Specific skillset: for example, you can take a course and earn a certificate for project planning
- Specific tools: for example, you can take a course and earn a certificate for tools like Excel or Python
- Specific career paths: for example, you can become a certified data analyst for a specific software
The other type of certifications that are supported by employers is those that involve the company or organisation you’re working for. This means that the intern will receive proof at the completion of their job contract that they’ve had a specific amount of training in that field.
For example, this can be required in medical fields. For example, you can get a certification after completing an internship of at least 1 year in a public hospital. These types of certifications can often be linked to and be an integral part of university studies for some careers.
Do You Get a Diploma for an Apprenticeship?
The other most common type of work contract for young adults in the UK is apprenticeship. But how do apprenticeships differ from internships? There are many ways in which this type of job is different from those of interns.
Apprenticeships are a type of programme that combine work with study. You can start an apprenticeship as long as you are:
- At least 16 years of age
- Living in England
- Not enrolled in any kind of full-time education
It is important to note that different countries deal with apprenticeships differently. That is to say, here we will be talking about England. If you’re curious to know more about apprenticeships in your country, take a look here:
- Scotland: apprenticeships.scot
- Wales: gov.wales
- Northern Ireland: nidirect.gov.uk
In an apprenticeship, you will be supported by the fact that you will be considered an employee by employers. That is to say, in this type of programme, you will be considered to be an employee and therefore earn a wage and get paid holiday.
The difference between apprentices and interns is that in an apprenticeship, your employer will need to set aside at least 20% of your working hours for study. This study has to be related to your role. The great thing about these types of programmes is that you will gain industry-specific skills and knowledge.
In England, all apprentices are assessed when their training is completed so that they can be tested on whether or not they’ve attained the necessary skills in whatever occupation they’re training in.
These types of assessments are made with the goal to check all the knowledge you’ve learned throughout your apprenticeship programme and giving the apprentice the chance to demonstrate the skills they’ve learned.
The apprenticeship assessment is called the “end-point assessment.” As you can probably guess, these assessments are different for every apprenticeship. However, every end-point assessment should be clearly defined for each apprenticeship contract.
However, there are a few basics that remain the same. For example, end-point assessments usually test for:
- Practical understanding of the career
- A project
- Interview and presentation skills
Keep in mind that there is only one organisation that is allowed to test your skills. This organisation has to be different from the organisation that is in charge of training during the apprenticeship. This organisation is called the end-point assessment organisation or EPAO.
The cost of the apprenticeship will be different depending on which EPAO you choose to do your end-point assessment with. However, it should never cost more than 20% of the funding maximum.
After passing the end-point assessment, the apprentice will get a certificate that they’ve successfully completed their internship. Keep in mind that you should find an EPAO early on in your programme.
Certificates for Traineeships in the United Kingdom
At this point, you may be wondering if it is possible to have any more development opportunities and certifications. You may have guessed by the title of this section but the answer is yes – there is one more common type of contract in the UK that you should have some key information about.
This application is the traineeship experience, which you can think of as a development programme. This type of programme is available to support anyone who wants to develop skills in a certain career and includes a work placement.
If you’re wondering who can apply for a traineeship, you should keep in mind that it is not like degree opportunities that are super competitive and full of students. A traineeship is actually there to help and support anyone who is 16-24 years old.
These types of development opportunities can also be open for 25-year-olds to apply if they have an EHC plan. The key purpose of this type of opportunity is that it will support anyone who wants to prepare for an apprenticeship or a job opportunity.
Anyone who is eligible to work in the UK can apply. Other than that, it doesn’t matter if you have a degree or not, as long as you are under 25 and have a specific career goal in mind you can apply.
Traineeships also differ from getting a degree or similar degree opportunities because getting this type of development support is completely free. It’s open to help students, people jump-starting their careers and any young person in the UK.
The cost of the training given to the trainee is covered by the government. There are two types of help involved in this type of programme and you should make sure you have all the necessary information before you send your application.
You get support from:
- Training providers: they prepare you for working, application skills like CV writing and help improve several key skills like maths and English
- Employers: you will get a chance to have a work placement of a minimum of 70 hours
Typically in England, you will not receive any certificate for your traineeship. It is enough to send your application and get help from trainers and employers.
However, in Northern Ireland, a traineeship programme will actually allow students and workers to get certifications and qualifications. Please check for specific programs for more
In England, traineeships are typically not paid and last from 6 weeks to one full year. In Northern Ireland however, a traineeship will usually take 2 years to complete.
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