Two Castle Employment employees graduate after completing degrees whilst working full time in pandemic

Beth Rowley, 24, and Jake Jackson, 22, both of Scarborough, worked full-time for Castle Employment during their studies, putting in 40+ hours per week before completing assignments on evenings and weekends.

Their dedication and ambition during their Chartered Management Degree Apprenticeship courses have been so impressive that they have earned five promotions between them over the past two years.

Beth and Jake graduated at the Coventry University ceremony at Scarborough Spa, accompanied by Kerry Hope, Managing Directing for Castle Employment, which fully funded their degrees.

Kerry said: “Beth and Jake are two people whose potential was clear when they joined the business.

“We believe very strongly in investing in our people and developing their skills and knowledge through academic learning and experience gained on the job in real-life situations.

“All of us are so proud of what they have achieved through working full-time while studying hard on evenings and weekends.

“Both Beth and Jake have very bright futures indeed.”

Jake began his career with Castle Employment in 2017 as a student, helping the Hospitality and Cleaning team as a “resourcer”, someone who researches candidates.

He was unsure about accepting a permanent role as he had aspirations to go to university until the company offered to fully fund his Chartered Manager Degree Apprenticeship course, allowing him to study and gain a degree while continuing to work full time.

Jake said: “My role has been very demanding especially in the last two years and so some weeks I have been writing assignments, working a 45-hour week whilst also being on call over weekends, managing a desk where temps are required both very last minute and 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

“But being able to work and study has really given me motivation and fuelled my ambition to achieve, and I am so very grateful for the opportunity to complete this degree.”

Beth originally joined Castle in 2015 as a finance apprentice and left to work in Leeds before returning in 2017, also in a resourcer role.

She was also identified as a team member who could flourish if given the opportunity to study towards the Chartered Manager Degree Apprenticeship and has during her studies been promoted to branch manager for Castle Employment’s York office.

She said: “Before starting the course I didn't imagine that I would now have the ability and confidence to be in charge of large successful contracts for Castle and managing a team of seven employees and 200 temps. The benefits to me both personally and professionally have been immense.

“While it was very hard working full time while undertaking the apprenticeship degree, I really appreciated the fact that I was able to attend uni in my hometown and that Castle fully supported me in this endeavour.”

Higher apprenticeships offer learners the opportunity to study at levels above A-levels and up to master’s degree equivalent and enable learners to work full-time while studying and completing coursework around their employment.