6.1. Introduction

In recent years, apprenticeships in higher education have increased. Questions could be raised about students’ attraction to apprenticeships in terms of their expectations, motivation, integration, rhythm and autonomy.

According to APEC¹, in 2016, the hiring of bac +4/bac +5² workers is more frequent in medium-sized companies; 11% of workers in establishments with 500 or more employees were recruited on permanent or fixed-term contracts of one year or more at the end of their studies.

The welcoming of apprentices makes it possible to enhance the image of the company, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, allows apprentices to develop, improve their skills and apply the theoretical knowledge they have studied (Van de Portal 2009).

The integration of an apprentice from a higher education institution thus makes it possible to promote professional experience, to have financial autonomy and to be part of the company. This integration offers young people the opportunity to access a qualification, by combining periods of employment in companies and periods in schools (Cranny et al. 1992).

In some schools, the apprenticeship program may last one or two years with work and studies generally alternating on a weekly basis. Apprenticeships are based on the principle of alternating between theoretical training at school and vocational training in the company with which the apprentice has signed his/her contract.

6.2. Work-linked training

The work-study program combines theoretical knowledge, soft skills and interpersonal skills that are both necessary and useful for the success of professional integration.

Some schools set up a system to help students find an internship, by disseminating internship offers, putting them in touch with former interns, meeting companies during forums, setting up CV and open days and cover letter workshops, as well as simulated interviews.

The objective of these forums is to enable companies to meet motivated students who wish to pursue higher education by training in the professions for which they are destined through significant experience within the company. These students thus receive proposals that detail the job profiles and tasks that will be entrusted to them in the context of their professional activity. When these proposals are validated by the school’s pedagogical services, they lead to the signing of an apprenticeship contract. This pedagogical follow-up consists, on the one hand, of checking and, on the other hand, of helping to carry out the apprenticeship contract:

“This allows you to benefit from real professional experience valued by employers. Today, employers consider an apprentice year as a year of work, which makes it easier for young people to enter working life after school. The objective of the apprenticeship is to discover a profession, a function in a specific sectoral environment through a one-year work-study immersion.”

This system thus offers students the opportunity to be trained by the host companies at the same time as studying in a practical approach.

Apprenticeships in higher education are useful as they meet the needs of companies and allow the development of a training offer corresponding to the reality of the labor market. At the same time, the apprentice can bring his or her expertise and skills to companies and be a source of innovation.

The work-study student benefits from the same training as the students in initial training according to a calendar specifically designed to take into account periods in the company. A support and supervision system is set up to ensure that particular attention is paid to the adequacy of the content of the assignments, the specific expectations of the company and the student’s professional project. A school tutor is responsible for monitoring and liaising with the host company (Boru and Leborgne 1992):

“For me, it is the most effective way to continue studying while taking a first step into the professional world. Indeed, it enables integration during studies, the principles of the professional world, while forging an experience in the desired field. It also helps to develop a professional network.”

An apprenticeship allows students to work with professionals, refine their projects and gain significant experience during the years of study. This professionalization experience is an opportunity for them to fully understand the professional behaviors to adopt and to adapt to relationships with their managers, colleagues and clients.

6.3. Follow-up and role of the tutor or apprenticeship manager

In order to ensure a successful work-study program, the role of the apprentice manager is crucial. They must support the work trainee to help him/her progress and develop skills, hence the need for regular follow-ups and meetings between the manager or tutor and the supervisor, or school tutor, in order to take stock of the course’s projects and the required social skills.

These exchanges focus on the understanding of the company and its environment, the apprentice’s behavior and the nature of his/her relations with his/her apprentice manager, as well as with other members of the staff. The aim is to identify difficulties in adaptation so that apprenticeships can take place under better conditions. These meetings strengthen the links between the school and the companies that collaborate with it by hosting apprentices. Among other things, it is a question not only of observing the integration of its students in the field but also of measuring their progress in acquiring the fundamental skills needed for the professions for which they are trained.

Apprentices expect availability, recognition, mutual understanding, encouragement and trust from their apprentice manager.

“The role of the apprentice manager is essential to the smooth running of work-linked training. If the apprenticeship manager does not get involved in the training of the apprentice or take time to train him/her in the mission throughout the year, work-linked training will not be beneficial to the apprentice. This is why it is essential that a relationship of trust is created between the trainee and the apprenticeship manager for the smooth running of the year and so that the tasks entrusted are in line with the student’s level (clichés of making coffee and photocopying).”

“During the apprenticeship, the manager must be understanding and trust his apprentice. The apprenticeship manager supports his apprentice, with the aim of developing his skills and obtaining quality work. It is very important to keep in mind that the apprentice is there to learn.”

“For my part, the contribution of the apprenticeship manager is considerable, because it allows us, if the relationship with the manager goes well, to really grow in our position and have an enriching experience by learning from someone with more experience; having lived the opposite situation, it very much prevents the apprentice from finding his place in the company and makes him feel he lacks a certain legitimacy, because, being alone in a job, it is difficult to find a place for yourself.”

6.4. Autonomy and confidence building?

Work-based training or apprenticeships perceive work experience as an experience that combines both professional and personal skills.

This apprenticeship experience enriches the work-based student’s career path by carrying out tasks and managing and carrying out projects. All these actions encourage the apprentice to take initiative and to organize his/her work in a professional way and thus feel a certain pride in the trust placed in him or her by apprenticeship managers or company tutors and colleagues.

Unlike internships, work-study programs place greater emphasis on the acquisition of skills, their development and the diversity of tasks and the completion of actions and projects.

“The fact that there is a relationship of trust with my tutor facilitates exchanges; I don’t hesitate to go to him when I have a problem, and on his side, he doesn’t hesitate to ask me things too.”

“I needed to know if what I was doing was right, if I was in my place as an apprentice coming in.”

However, contract breaches may exist, but they are rarely because of relational difficulties between the student and her apprenticeship manager, or because of a misdirection related to the profession.

“The subject of the tasks assigned to the apprentice is rather complicated. Indeed, since the apprentice cannot follow the files on a daily basis, the most important ones and those requiring high reactivity cannot be entrusted to him. But the manager can go to the extreme, by entrusting him with tasks that will therefore be of no real interest or even use for the apprentice. That’s why it’s important to know what both parties expect and reach an agreement. Communication is also very important, as is curiosity and initiative for the apprentice.”

6.5. Better professional integration

Work-linked training allows young people to realize the importance of the professional network and to make themselves known. This network is a way of creating links within the company or outside, which could make it easier for them to find a job after the work-study program.

“It also makes it possible, through trade fairs and meetings between companies, to start building a network and discover different profiles. However, it is of course necessary to maintain your own network afterwards. However, the network depends heavily on the experience we have, I think.”

“Work-linked training allows you to create a professional network, particularly through professional social networks that allow you to stay in touch with the people you meet. This represents a real advantage for the professional future of the work-study student.”

“Experience is valued, certainly not as a year of experience, as such, but as a real experience in which one has already acquired professional knowledge and know-how.”

Indeed, the work-study program offers host companies the opportunity to train a future employee who knows the company well, is in a professionalization process, has already been integrated and is also “a qualified workforce at an attractive cost”.

At the end of their work-linked training, the attendees behave in a different way. Some prefer to broaden their professional experience and refuse offers of employment from their host company, while others accept those offers because they are familiar with the company’s way of doing business and its culture.

6.6. Managing the pace of the work-linked training

The rhythm of work-linked training differs from one establishment to another and may seem unsuitable for the activities of host companies, which themselves vary according to the sector of activity or profession practiced. Moreover, this criterion can be a barrier when recruiting an apprentice. For work-based trainees, adapting to this pace can be constraining, especially when organizing working time and managing reports, homework and group work requested outside the training period. On the other hand, companies have difficulty understanding the educational burden of their work-based trainees and the pace to which they are subjected.

The pace of work-linked training has an impact on the tasks that the host company can entrust to work-linked trainees. If this pace corresponds well to the company’s needs, the tasks may be more interesting and evolve. If the opposite is true, the work-based trainee may find himself/herself in a situation where he/she will not be able to follow and carry out projects

“On the negative points, the pace is tiring for the student who must constantly readapt, one week to the rhythm of the company, one week to the rhythm of school. Also, it requires a lot of organization, in terms of activities for school on the one hand, and the organization in the company on the other hand, so as not to leave any tasks outstanding.”

“One of the most complicated things for the apprentice to manage is the pace. Indeed, it is necessary to ‘juggle’ two worlds: one academic and the other professional. It is sometimes difficult to follow current files, while remaining focused on courses and exams to be taken. This rhythm can sometimes be stressful, I think. Similarly, it is also necessary to adapt one’s behavior between the two environments.”

“Managing the rhythm of every other week is possible but more complicated in some areas I think, it would probably be more interesting to have part of the week in the company and the other part at school, but it depends on the areas and specificities of each one. The rhythm is intense and it can be tiring, and many work-based trainees continue to follow the life of the company and work sometimes during breaks and evenings, even if this is not supposed to be the case to avoid being late when returning…”

6.7. Conclusion

Work-linked training can be a springboard to professional integration if certain criteria and conditions are present: the role of the apprenticeship manager, alternating school-enterprise pace and adapting to it; emphasizing and combining theoretical knowledge, practical knowledge and know-how; developing autonomy, enriching the work-linked training pathway through the acquisition of skills, acquiring significant experience and gaining a qualification.