1. Key Facts and Figures 2022/23

Key points:

Starts

300

Up 11% from 2021/22

Participation

780

Up 20% from 2021/22

Qualified

115

No change from 2021/22

Key facts and figures:

  • HLA starts in NI HEIs rose in academic year 2022/23, with 300 students joining an HLA programme. This was an increase of 11% (30) from 2021/22.
  • In 2022/23, a higher number of males (185) joined an HLA programme in HE compared to females (115).
  • There were 780 Higher Level Apprenticeship students in HE in 2022/23, an annual increase of 20%.
  • Business and management remained the most popular subject area with HLA HE students, accounting for 44% (340) of all HLAs in 2022/23.
  • In 2022/23, 115 Higher Level Apprenticeship students successfully qualified at NI HEIs.

Definitions

Starts:
The number of HLA HE students who joined an HLA programme in academic year 2022/23.
Participation:
The number of HLA HE students enrolled on an HLA programme in academic year 2022/23.
Qualified:
The number of HLA HE students who qualified with an HLA qualification in academic year 2022/23.


2. About this report

This report presents analysis of the fifth publication of Higher Level Apprenticeships (HLAs) in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Northern Ireland. HLA provision commenced in Northern Ireland HEIs in 2018/19. The HLAs reported on in this publication are funded through government training programmes. The report details key information on level 6 and 7 HLA HE programmes and characteristics of HLA students up to academic year 2022/23.


3. Starts

Starts

Higher Level Apprenticeship starts in NI Higher Education Institutions rose in academic year 2022/23, with 300 students joining an HLA programme. This was an increase of 11% (30) from 2021/22.

With the exception of a dip in 2020/21, during the COVID-19 pandemic, HLA starts in HE have shown steady growth. This demonstrates the programme is gaining in momentum as a route to a university accredited degree and a professional qualification, while also providing on-the-job experience and avoiding student loan debt.

Figure 3.1: HLAs in HE increase in 2022/23

HLA HE starts for academic years 2018/19 to 2022/23

Level and Providers

In 2022/23, Level 6 and Level 7 HLAs were offered at the Northern Ireland HEIs: Ulster University (UU) and Queen’s University Belfast (QUB). Level 6 HLA programmes dominated, representing 88% (265) of all HLA starts. UU was the provider to record the highest number of starts, accounting for 240 (80%) of new HLA students during 2022/23.

Table 3.1: Greater uptake in Level 6 HLAs

Number of HLA starts by HEIs and HLA level, 2022/23

HLA Level Queen’s University Belfast Ulster University Total
Level 6 30 235 265
Level 7 30 5 35
Total 60 240 300

Sex of Starts

In 2022/23, a higher number of males (185) joined an HLA programme in HE compared to females (115). Female and male starts recorded a similar increase over the year, females up 10% and males up 12% from 2021/22. A trend shows more males are joining HLA HE programmes than females.

Figure 3.2: More Male HLA HE starts in 2022/23

HLA HE starts by sex for academic years 2018/19 to 2022/23

Multiple Deprivation Measure

The lowest number of Northern Ireland domiciled HLA starts were recorded by the most deprived Multiple Deprivation Measure (MDM) areas in NI; Quintile 1, which recorded 35 starts. Quintile 4, reported the highest number of HLA starts (75).

Figure 3.3: HLA HE starts were lowest in the most deprived quintile

HLA starts by Deprivation Quintiles, academic year 2022/23

Subject Areas

Business and management was the most popular subject area for HLA HE starts in 2022/23. This subject area recorded 145 starts and was popular with males (75 starts) and females (65 starts). Business and management has been the most popular subject area since the HLA programme commenced in 2018/19.

Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM)

In 2022/23, half of all new HLAs (150 students) had enrolled in programmes within broad STEM disciplines. When focusing specifically on narrow STEM subjects, these accounted for 37% of HLA starts (110 students), with males accounting for over two-thirds (68%) of these.

4. Participation

Participation refers to the total number of students enrolled on HLA programmes at HEIs in NI, this includes students in any year of an HLA HE programme.

Academic year 2022/23, reported 780 Higher Level Apprenticeship students in HE, an annual increase of 20%. In total there were 300 starts and 480 students who had progressed to second year or further in their HLA programme.

Figure 4.1: Student HLA participants increase by 20% in 2022/23

The number of HLA students in HE, academic years 2018/19 to 2022/23.

Subject area

Business and management remained the most popular subject area with HLA HE students, accounting for 44% (340) of all HLAs in 2022/23. This was the most popular subject area with female and male HLA participants, 170 females and 165 males.

HLA HE students (NI domiciled) by LGD

Belfast reported the highest number of NI domiciled students (125) on a Higher Level Apprenticeship in Higher Education Institutions in academic year 2022/23.

Map

Map data

Local Government District Participants
Antrim and Newtownabbey 65
Ards and North Down 45
Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon 105
Belfast 125
Causeway Coast and Glens 50
Derry City and Strabane 55
Fermanagh and Omagh 25
Lisburn and Castlereagh 60
Mid Ulster 80
Mid and East Antrim 55
Newry, Mourne and Down 85
Total 750


5. Performance

Qualifiers

In 2022/23, 115 students successfully qualified with Higher Level Apprenticeships at NI HEIs, the same number was recorded in 2021/22. There were 50 females and 65 males.

Subject Areas

In 2022/23, the HLA subject area to report the highest number of qualified students was Business and management. This subject area recorded 45 students; 20 females and 20 males.

Figure 5.1: Business and Management was the subject area to record the highest number of qualifiers

HLA qualifiers by subject area, academic year 2022/23

Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM)

There were 65 HLA HE students who qualified in Broad STEM subjects, 50 in Non-STEM and 55 in Narrow STEM (which is a subset of Broad STEM).

Figure 5.2: A higher number of HLA HE students qualified in Broad STEM subjects

HLA HE qualifiers by STEM indicator, 2022/23


6. Further Information and Contact Details

Excel/Open/CSV Tables

Detailed Excel/Open/CSV Data tables are available update with link here.

Higher Level Apprenticeships offer the opportunity to gain quality training and a recognised higher qualification while in paid employment. To learn more about the DfE funded HLAs offered see Higher Level Apprenticeships. The length of a Higher Level Apprenticeship will vary depending on the programme and when the student joined the HLA programme.

For information regarding ‘Technical Notes’ on the methodology used to produce the statistics and information regarding definitions of terms within the report, please see the document: Technical Notes and Definitions.

Contact Details

For further details on any of these statistics, or to provide feedback, contact: (Tel: 028 90 257708) or (Tel: 028 90 257736)

This publication is produced by Youth Training Statistics and Research Branch, Analytical Services Division, Department for the Economy.

Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should adhere to. You are welcome to contact us directly with any comments about how we meet these standards. Alternatively, you can contact OSR by emailing or via the OSR website.