A new apprenticeship programme will offer school leavers the opportunity to get paid work experience in the banking sector while studying for a degree.
Danske Futures, a partnership between Danske Bank and Ulster University, is a three-year higher level apprenticeship programme for students who have completed their A-Levels and is the first collaboration of its kind between a local bank and university.
Successful applicants will take up a role within Danske’s Personal Banking and Small Business team or its Operations team, while studying part-time for a fully-funded BSc Hons degree in Managing the Customer Contact.
The Danske Futures programme is now open for applications and an initial intake of 15 students will join Danske in October.
Caroline van der Feltz, Head of HR at Danske Bank, believes the programme is a unique opportunity.
She said: “We know that affordability can be a barrier to higher education. By enabling students to earn money and study for a fully-funded degree, our new programme offers ambitious school leavers a fantastic opportunity to get ahead in their career.
“Danske Futures complements our existing graduate programme and means there are more points of entry into our organisation than ever before.
“With Danske Futures we hope that we can support some of Northern Ireland’s brightest young talent achieve their full potential, while bringing new skills and fresh ideas to our business.”
Programme Director and Apprenticeship Lead at Ulster University, Timothy Moruzzi added: “The BSc in Managing the Customer Contact is a market leading course, and as far as we know it’s the only higher education programme of its kind in the world. The new partnership with Danske Bank will see students have the opportunity to put their learning into practice day-to-day in an industry leading organisation.”
The closing date for applications is August 27 and entry into the programme requires six or more GCSEs grade A*- C, including Maths and English, plus 3 A’ levels grade C+ or equivalent.
Further information and details of how to apply can be found at here.