ABSTRACT
Colleges and universities sometimes form partnerships with employers to provide one-day-a-week courses for apprentices and trainees. Day release is rarely considered to be an employee right, but employers frequently view it as an investment, both in their workers and in their business. College-based day release programmes, with employers normally meeting course costs, may focus on general literacy or numeracy support or be tailored to the particular training needs of those working in service sector industries. Colleges typically provide a theoretical input complementing the practical workplace experience, though it is not uncommon for such institutions to be equipped with workshops, kitchens, salons and so forth for the purposes of advanced practical training. Day release courses are popular in such areas as catering, beauty therapy, hairdressing, motor vehicle maintenance and social care. In the United Kingdom a new type of day release training opportunity has emerged from closer links between employers and higher education providers. For example, Balfour Beatty, a leading construction company, permits its trainees to work four days a week on a construction site and one day a week at university, with tuition fees paid by the employer. Trainees complete a succession of national vocational qualifications over a five-year period, at the end of which they graduate with a bachelor’s degree in an area such as architectural technology, civil engineering or quantity surveying.
