Working In The Industry

Print Sector Qualifications and Skills Development

Due to the expensive print machinery used by print sector businesses "hands on training" at colleges and schools is limited. Most print companies train their own staff at work on their own machines. This training can form part of NVQ qualifications and Apprenticeships.

There are many other types of qualification that this sector's employers value highly. These include the GCSEs in Graphic Design, English, maths and IT taught in schools and most colleges. There are printing NVQs in:

  • Pre-press - (Analogue or Digital)
  • Desktop Publishing
  • Machine Printing: - Web, Offset Litho, Flexography, Letterpress, Screen, Gravure, Pad Printing and Digital.
  • Mechanised Print Finishing and Binding
  • Carton Manufacture

Printing Apprenticeships, Advanced Apprenticeships and relevant foundation degrees and degrees are also available.

This range of qualifications provides you with a number of options to help you become part of the print team. For those of you who want to leave school at 16, work based qualifications such as the NVQs (National Vocational Qualifications) and Apprenticeship programmes are available. These can be studied while working with day release to a printing college. Vocational courses such as these can provide access to higher education courses such as foundation degrees and honours degrees for those interested in management roles.

Alternatively you may choose to stay on at school/college to complete "A" Levels. Either route can lead to future managerial positions, but print sector work experience will be needed. Higher level qualifications such as degrees provide access to graduate schemes, used by many large organisations, to recruit and train up their next batch of managers. Graduate schemes often involve spending a fixed period of time in each part of the business, so you can develop a good overall understanding of the organisation.