Level 4 Apprenticeship

emma1990

AAT have just announced that apprentices studying level 4 now have to do an additional year in business studies - I have already started back at college, they have left it so late to announce.

And it now means I won't qualify next year, but in 2 years time :(:(

Cudey

Hi Emma,

Where did you hear this?

I lost my funding due to being over 24 as of August (literally by weeks!) but sounds like i've dodged a bullet if this is the case.

emma1990

hey,

yes you definitely have! the course is now made up of 2 years - 1st being diploma in accounting and the 2nd being a diploma in business studies.

now is the decision whether to carry on training for free but complete later or pay the fees for an earlier finish

i heard it through my college today but it is so late in telling us and such little information - i don't know if technically aat will be finished next year or not.

Cudey

emma1990 wrote: »

hey,

yes you definitely have! the course is now made up of 2 years - 1st being diploma in accounting and the 2nd being a diploma in business studies.

now is the decision whether to carry on training for free but complete later or pay the fees for an earlier finish

i heard it through my college today but it is so late in telling us and such little information - i don't know if technically aat will be finished next year or not.

Interesting one. I'm a bloke whose 24 - so sorry if this comes across as rude, but can I presume you're 23 from your username? If so, wouldn't the 2 years take you over the 24 year old threshold?

Also, I think the apprenticeships are different to the AAT itself. For instance I fought tooth and nail to not do those bloody functional skills exams (they were awesome weren't they?) but had to in the end. I sat them on Wednesday, but received my AAT certificate yesterday. (Last exam was 13th August)

So technically you'll have the certificate once you finish the level 4 AAT exams.

emma1990

yeah i am 23 and i had that same query but apparently it doesn't matter as long as you registered on the apprenticeship before you are 24?

haha i had the same battle with those! but again that is something i can't get my head around as functional skills are nothing to do with aat but this extra diploma is? and i was told i can't graduate with the rest of my class.

Cudey

emma1990 wrote: »

yeah i am 23 and i had that same query but apparently it doesn't matter as long as you registered on the apprenticeship before you are 24?

haha i had the same battle with those! but again that is something i can't get my head around as functional skills are nothing to do with aat but this extra diploma is? and i was told i can't graduate with the rest of my class.

Well I wasn't allowed to register as I was 24 in July. To be honest it's a stupid decision by the government to cut the AAT funding mid way through. I thought they wanted to support apprenticeships? And how much cash are they really saving by it? I guess once you've registered they can't cut your funding until you've finished the level. But then as you say, you either get the free training and bare the additional year or you pay for it. What's your employers view on this?

The functional skills is a load of rubbish. I missed some of my class to because of it. I argued it's not vital as only certain people have to do it. Felt quite patronised by it all in truth. Which college are you studying with?

emma1990

Oh really? I guess at the time they thought I would be finished by 24. I know I thought the apprenticeships were so good but there always seems to be something new!

You sound just like me haha, I hated the fact I had to learn English/Maths I had done at school over learning accountancy which is what I was there to do! I have my GCSEs for a reason and it was so annoying! And quite right with the extra diploma - a whole year that no-one else has to do so how can it be that important? If it was, surely everyone would be doing it.

My employer has been so good - they know im unhappy doing a second year so we are looking in to doing it privately with another college as it is quite a lot of money at soton. I really like the college though and plus already started last week!

I just wish I could do it alongside this year but they don't get the additional work til march 2014 so i can't very undecided what to do!

topcat

I have been told nothing about this as of yet enrolled last week

Have you seen the PDFs I'm not sure of we class as current Aat students under option 1?so we don't have to do it?

https://www.aat.org.uk/news/article/aat-apprentices-win-ICAEW-challenge

topcat

sorry wrong link found this through a google search

http://www.aat.org.uk/system/files/assets/FAQs_Level_4_Apprenticeships_0.pdf

and

http://www.aat.org.uk/sites/default/files/assets/Employer-FAQs-for-L4-Apprenticeships-2013.pdf

topcat

sorry edit time ran out again :mad2:
Quote from second PDF page 2

"All Level 4

Apprentices who register as an AAT
student member
on or
after 1 September 2013 will be
on the new framework"
we are already registered AAT students from previous years so not convinced ? but then i am not sure if we transfer to new syllabus AQ2013 from AQ2010 or stay on AQ2010?

edit looks like we transfer to AQ2013 so im going to shut up now :-)

emma1990

I don't quite understand it as some people are staying on 2010 and I have done one exam from the old syllabus so don't get why I can't :(

topcat

emma1990 wrote: »

I don't quite understand it as some people are staying on 2010 and I have done one exam from the old syllabus so don't get why I can't :(

im quite confused about it all , didn't even realize we had to do this until i spotted this thread so assume college will drop the bombshell soon :S

i think if we start level 4 September you have to do new level 4 syllabus even though you did the old level 2 + 3 one ?

it really is ridiculous if we have to do this , had enough last year being made to do functional skills as my GCSES are 5 years old just plain insulting.

emma1990

i'm assuming all colleges will have to make the change? maybe colleges are just taking longer to hear etc.

from what i read it technically says if you have registered as an aat student before september you can do 2010 but my assessor has told me no so not sure if its worded wrong.

i know! i was having to do extra functional skills this year but they have now dropped functional skills and err workbook.

you can still start further studies after the 1st year but an extra 2nd year is still a big tie to college and to the workplace.

Cudey

emma1990 wrote: »

i'm assuming all colleges will have to make the change? maybe colleges are just taking longer to hear etc.

from what i read it technically says if you have registered as an aat student before september you can do 2010 but my assessor has told me no so not sure if its worded wrong.

i know! i was having to do extra functional skills this year but they have now dropped functional skills and err workbook.

you can still start further studies after the 1st year but an extra 2nd year is still a big tie to college and to the workplace.

They've dropped Functional skill and the ERR Workbook!??!

ERR is the only thing I have left and I fudging hate it!! The questions don't make any sense to me - and to be honest its time consuming pointless crap.

Agree TC - I was insulted, I got 2 high B's but they were 7 years old, but hey, if got an A I wouldn't have had to do them. They shouldn't exempt the "A" graders from school. Many of those "A graders" from school are currently thick as two planks of wood, and a few have got into trouble and bad habits as they didn't "live their childhood" so to speak and stayed looked in with a head in a textbook. Fair play if that's your thing, but many of the ones I know lack life experience and common sense. There's a difference between knowing a text book to pass GCSE's than having some experience and common sense.

Apologies for the rant, but it's really got under my skin. Especially as I had to do them in level 3... I passed all the level 3 exams first time - surely that shows i'm smart enough without having to do this dysfunctional skills malarkey!

emma1990

i think they have just dropped it from level 4 but i agree, surely our competence is based on passing our accountancy exams!