1. Key Facts and Figures 2024/25

Key points:

Starts

3,180

Participation

3,680

Traineeship Achievements

2,035

The academic year 2024/25 shows:

  • 3,180 individuals commenced a level 2 Traineeship programme, an increase of 1,380 compared to 1,800 new starts recorded in 2023/24. This represents an annual growth of 77%.

  • The gap closed between male and female Traineeship starts, with both sexes equally represented: 1,580 females and 1,600 males.

  • The two leading occupational areas for Traineeship starts in 2024/25 were Childcare and Hairdressing, with 310 (10%) and 275 (9%) respectively.

  • 3,680 FE students were enrolled on a Traineeship programme, this included 3,180 new starts and 500 in year two.

  • There were 2,525 final year Traineeship students, with 81% (2,035) achieving either full or partial achievement in their Traineeship.

Definitions

Starts:
The number of students who started a Traineeship during the reported academic year.
Participation:
The number of students enrolled in a Traineeship during the reported academic year.
Traineeship Achievement:
The number of final-year Traineeship students who successfully achieved a diploma, certificate, or at least one Traineeship component during the reported academic year.


2. About this report

This report presents analysis of the fourth publication of Traineeships delivered in Further Education (FE) colleges in Northern Ireland. Traineeships are a level 2 qualification and will typically take one to two years to complete on a full-time basis; the programme commenced in academic year 2021/22. The Traineeships reported on in this publication, are funded through government training programmes. The report details key information on Traineeships and characteristics of students on this programme for academic year 2024/25.


3. Starts

Starts

In 2024/25, 3,180 individuals commenced a level 2 Traineeship programme, an increase of 1,380 compared to 1,800 starts recorded in 2023/24. This represents an annual growth of 77%. The number of starts has increased each year since the programme began.

Figure 3.1: Traineeship starts increase in 2024/25

Traineeship starts, academic years 2021/22 to 2024/25

FE Colleges

Traineeships are delivered at all six FE colleges. In 2024/25, South Eastern Regional College recorded the highest number of starts, accounting for 26% (830 starts). One year-programme Traineeships appear to be the preferred option in 2024/25. Two-thirds (66%) of Traineeship starts chose a one-year programme rather than a two-year option, with 2,110 and 1,070 students respectively.

Table 3.1: South Eastern Regional College accounts for the largest proportion of starts

Number of Traineeship starts by FE college and programme length, 2024/25

Programme length Belfast Metropolitan College Northern Regional College North West Regional College South Eastern Regional College Southern Regional College South West College Total
1 Year 95 425 255 555 490 290 2,110
2 Years 225 100 135 275 135 205 1,070
Total 315 525 390 830 625 495 3,180

Age and Sex

In 2024/25, the majority of Traineeship starts (89%, 2,845) were aged 18 or under, while 9% (280 students) were aged 19–24, and just 2% (55 students) were aged 25 or over.

In 2024/25, the gap closed between male and female Traineeship starts, with both sexes equally represented: 1,580 females and 1,600 males. This reflects a significant increase in female Traineeship starts in recent years.

Figure 3.2: Equal representation from females and males in 2024/25

Traineeship starts by sex for academic years 2021/22 to 2024/25

Occupational Areas

Figure 3.3 shows that males and females pursue distinctly different career paths in Traineeships, with many occupational areas being strongly dominated by one sex. The two leading occupational areas for Traineeship starts in 2024/25 were Childcare and Hairdressing, with 310 (10%) and 275 (9%) respectively. Both were female dominated areas. Barbering and Light Vehicle occupational areas, were two of the male dominated occupational areas, each accounting for 7% of all Traineeship starts.

STEM Indicator

In 2024/25, 38% of Traineeship starts were studying a Broad STEM related subject. In total, there were 1,220 Broad STEM traineeship starts, of these 1,020 (84%) were male and 200 (16%) were female. One-fifth (20%) of Traineeship starts were Narrow STEM.

Table 3.2: More males in broad STEM subjects and more females in non-STEM subjects for Traineeships

Number of Traineeship starts by FE college, 2024/25

STEM Indicator Female Male Total
Broad STEM 200 1,020 1,220
Narrow STEM 75 570 645
Non-STEM 1,380 580 1,960

Note: Narrow STEM is a subset of Broad STEM


4. Participation

Participation refers to the total number of students enrolled on a Traineeship programme.

In total 3,680 FE students were enrolled on a Traineeship programme in academic year 2024/25, this included 3,180 new starts and 500 in year two.

NI domiciled Traineeship students by Local Government District (LGD)

In academic year 2024/25, there were 3,620 NI domiciled students enrolled on a Traineeship. The Local Government District with the highest number was Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon, with 545 students, representing 15% of all NI domiciled Traineeship students.

Map

Map data

Local Government District Participants
Antrim and Newtownabbey 230
Ards and North Down 400
Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon 545
Belfast 330
Causeway Coast and Glens 310
Derry City and Strabane 345
Fermanagh and Omagh 320
Lisburn and Castlereagh 265
Mid Ulster 315
Mid and East Antrim 175
Newry, Mourne and Down 400
Unknown 55
Total 3,690

End of LGD Section

Figure 4.1.PNG

Multiple Deprivation Measure

Among NI domiciled Traineeship students with a known postcode, the largest share (25%, 915 students) came from areas ranked in the second most deprived quintile of the Multiple Deprivation Measure (MDM). In contrast, the smallest proportion (11%) were from the least deprived areas (Quintile 5).

Figure 4.1: More Traineeship students come from more deprived areas

NI Domiciled Traineeship students by Deprivation Quintiles, academic year 2024/25


5. Performance

The Traineeship programme consists of multiple components that contribute to the overall qualification. A student can typically enroll in a full-time vocational qualification (main component), transversal skills and essential skills in numeracy and literacy. This report analyses student performance of the overall Traineeship qualification, the vocational qualification and essential skills. The performance calculations take into account both full and partial achievement of these components.

Traineeship Achievement

In academic year 2024/25, there were 2,525 final year Traineeship students, with 81% (2,035) achieving either full or partial achievement in their Traineeship. Full achievement refers to obtaining a Diploma or Certificate, while partial achievement was awarded to students who successfully achieved at least one component of the Traineeship programme.

Traineeship qualification

Table 5.1: Four in five final year Traineeship students achieved success

Traineeship qualification performance rates, 2024/25

Final Year Final Year Completer Final Year Full Achievement Final Year Partial Achievement Retention Rate Achievement Rate Success Rate
2,525 2,105 1,450 585 83 97 81

Among final year Traineeship completers, 43% earned a Diploma and 26% earned a Certificate.

Table 5.2: Traineeship final year completers by achievement classification, 2024/25

Traineeship final year completers by achievement classification, 2024/25

Achievement Classification Number Percentage
Diploma 895 43
Certificate 555 26
Component 585 28
No achievement 70 3
Final year completer 2,105 100

Vocational qualification

This is the main Traineeship qualification in a chosen occupational area. In 2024/25, 2,525 final year Traineeship students were enrolled on the core full-time vocational qualification, of these 79% achieved either full or partial achievement.

Table 5.3: Vocational qualification performance rates, 2024/25

Final Year Final Year Completer Final Year Full Achievement Final Year Partial Achievement Retention Rate Achievement Rate Success Rate
2,525 2,105 1,860 145 83 95 79

Essential Skills

Students who had not previously achieved a Level 2 qualification in literacy and numeracy could enroll on Essential Skills courses as part of their Traineeship. Of the 1,200 Traineeship students enrolled in their final year of Essential Skills Literacy, 855 students (71%) successfully achieved their qualification. While more students were enrolled in Essential Skills Numeracy (1,745), the success rate was lower, with 42% (725 students) achieving their qualification.

Table 5.4: Traineeship students: Literacy success rates surpass Numeracy in Essential Skills

Literacy and Numeracy qualification performance rates, 2024/25

Essential Skills Final Year Final Year Completer Final Year Full Achievement Final Year Partial Achievement Retention Rate Achievement Rate Success Rate
Literacy 1,200 1,030 850 5 86 83 71
Numeracy 1,745 1,485 710 20 85 49 42

Note: Essential skills include up to Level 2. The highest level of achievement is used where a student has more than one enrolment for a subject.


6. Further Information and Contact Details

Excel/Open/CSV Tables

Detailed Excel/Open/CSV Data tables are available here.

Traineeships offer the opportunity to achieve a full level 2 outcome equivalent to up to five GCSEs at grade C or above including maths and English. Further Information on Traineeships can be accessed at Traineeships|nidirect.

For information on 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.