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(Vocational Training Instructor, Apprenticeship Coordinator, Trade Training Officer, Vocational Education Officer)
Education & Training
Salary
€38,000 - €65,000/yr
Level
Professional
Outlook
Growing
Sector
Education & Training
As an Apprenticeship Training Officer you support apprentices through their structured learning programmes, working across both on-the-job and off-the-job training phases under the national apprenticeship system operated by SOLAS and the Education and Training Boards (ETBs). You visit workplaces to observe apprentices in practice, assess their competencies against national standards, and liaise closely with employers to ensure the learning environment meets programme requirements. Your role involves delivering or coordinating trade-specific instruction, giving constructive feedback, and monitoring each apprentice's progress through their logbooks, assignments, and formal assessments. You work alongside other tutors, ETB staff, and industry representatives, and may cover apprenticeships across a range of craft and consortia-led programmes from electrical and plumbing to auctioneering and financial services.
Listen: a day as an Apprenticeship Training Officer
You arrive at the ETB training centre at eight o'clock, grab a coffee and open your laptop to check emails from SOLAS and from a handful of employers who have apprentices currently on their on-the-job phases. One electrician contractor in Athlone wants to flag that a first-year apprentice is struggling with safe isolation procedures, so you make a note to prioritise that workplace visit this week. By half eight you are in the workshop with a group of twelve electrical apprentices who are midway through an off-the-job training block. You run through a fault-finding exercise using live rigs, reminding the group to complete each step in their competency logbook as they go. The logbooks are the paper trail that SOLAS requires, and missing entries cause real delays to progression, so you are patient but firm about keeping them up to date.
A relevant Level 8 honours bachelor's degree in your trade, technical, or professional field is the typical minimum entry requirement for this role, often combined with significant industry experience in the relevant apprenticeship area. Leaving Certificate subjects such as Construction Studies, Engineering, Business, Physics, or Applied Mathematics are useful foundations depending on the trade specialism involved. Many officers enter having first completed a SOLAS craft apprenticeship themselves, later topping up to a degree through programmes at Technological Universities such as TU Dublin, MTU, ATU, SETU, or TUS. A recognised teaching or training qualification, such as a QQI Level 6 Certificate in Training and Education or a postgraduate diploma in further and adult education, is commonly required or expected to be completed on entry. ETBs are the primary employers, and recruitment is typically advertised through the relevant ETB and the Public Appointments Service. No single statutory registration body governs all Apprenticeship Training Officers, though adherence to ETB and SOLAS quality frameworks is mandatory.
Most Apprenticeship Training Officers begin their careers as skilled tradespeople or industry professionals before moving into an education and training role with an ETB. With experience, you may take on responsibility for coordinating a specific apprenticeship programme or mentoring newly appointed officers within your ETB. Senior positions such as Training Manager or Head of Apprenticeship within an ETB offer broader strategic and administrative responsibility. Some experienced officers move into national roles with SOLAS, contributing to programme development, quality assurance, or the expansion of the apprenticeship system.
AI tools are beginning to support Apprenticeship Training Officers by enabling more personalised tracking of each apprentice's progress and flagging learners who may need additional support earlier in the programme. Digital assessment platforms and e-portfolio systems are increasingly used alongside or instead of paper logbooks, streamlining record keeping and reporting to SOLAS. However, the core of the role — workplace visits, hands-on competency assessment, and building relationships with apprentices and employers — remains deeply human and cannot be replicated by automated systems. Officers who embrace digital literacy and learn to use AI-assisted scheduling, reporting, and feedback tools will be better placed to manage growing caseloads efficiently.
→ Apprenticeship Training Officer (Current role)
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Organisations in Ireland that employ people in this occupation.
Dublin 2 (national remit)
National body overseeing and funding all apprenticeship programmes in Ireland
Dublin City
Delivers apprenticeship off-the-job training and employs training officers
Cork City and County
Supports craft and consortia-led apprentices across Munster region
Portlaoise, Co. Laois
Coordinates apprenticeship phases and workplace visits across midlands
Galway City
Manages apprentice registration, assessment and employer liaison in the west
Limerick City
Delivers on-the-job and off-the-job apprenticeship support across mid-west
Dublin (Grangegorman, Bolton Street, Tallaght)
Hosts consortia-led apprenticeship programmes requiring training officer roles
Cork and Kerry
Delivers degree and higher apprenticeships needing workplace-based assessors
Dublin 2 (national remit)
Central coordination body supporting training officer networks nationwide
Letterkenny, Co. Donegal
Registers apprentices and conducts employer workplace assessments in the north-west
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