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One of the big differences between a vocational education and a general education is that you earn money while you learn. When you are in training with an employer, you receive apprentice pay — not state education grant. Here we explain how pay and conditions typically fit together, so you know what you are getting into.

§Student wages — and that it increases.

As an apprentice you receive wages from the workplace you are apprenticing at. A basic principle is that apprentice wages increase through the course: the further you have progressed and the more you can contribute the higher the rate. It starts lower at first and increases as you approach your journeyman's certificate. The specific rates are set in collective agreements in the field and are regulated continuously — ask your employer or union about the current rate rather than calculating a figure you have heard.

§The agreement sets the framework

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§If you don't have an agreement yet

If you don't get a training agreement with a company right away, your education doesn't have to stall. Schools have a scheme where you can continue your training in a school-based program and receive an allowance while you keep looking for a job. This way you can move forward in your education even if the agreement takes time.

§Terms when you are skilled

With the journeyman's certificate in hand you are skilled and it changes your conditions. As a trained worker you are no longer on apprentice wages but on a skilled wage according to the collective agreement — and with a trade certificate you have proof that you know your trade. It typically gives better pay more responsibility and more job opportunities than unskilled work in the same field.

• 01You move from apprentice pay to skilled pay
• 02The trade certificate documents your competencies to employers
• 03The agreement also covers wages, holidays, pensions and working hours as a skilled worker
• 04You can build further with further and continuing education (see separate article)

§You should keep an eye on this yourself

Check your payslip and know your contract. Make sure you're getting the correct rate for the level you've reached, that allowances and pension are included, and that your hours match what was agreed. If in doubt, ask — your union representative or labor union is there to help you with this

“An apprenticeship is both an internship and a job — you have the rights that come with being employed.”

— Professional basic rule.