EmployNZ offers a training and future pathway for every 15 year old we enrol
We can meet with you and your teen to discuss the various options that there are to move into youth development programmes, apprenticeships, or to stay at school and ask for different subjects or apply for the Trades Academy courses, STAR courses or Gateway courses. A lot of this will depend on what they want to do when they do leave school so it is also important to make sure that they are in the right subject choices to acheive any pre requisite or entry achievement standards for any NCEA levels, or tertiary education courses they may need to do to qualify for the profession they are looking to get into.
If they do want to leave school, we can work alongside you to apply for an early leaving exemption to study at EmployNZ. There is a way to still gain NCEA levels 1 and 2, but in a different environment, in small group sizes, which may suit their needs much better.
We provide several options for 15 year olds looking to leave school early but still gain their NCEA through our Youth Guarantee programmes, which are fully funded by the government.
Our courses which can enrol 15 year olds are offered in Tauranga and Rotorua.
The rules for getting an early leaving exemption are managed by the MoE with any approvals made by the local MoE Staff.
Students under the age of 16 may be eligible if they meet MoE criteria.
MoE considers the following when determining if your young person meets the criteria:
- their educational problems
- their conduct
- the unlikelihood of them benefiting from staying at school
You will need to show that you, and your 15 year old, have a plan for what they will do, to successfully get into further training or a career.
EmployNZ can support this plan before, or after, you make contact with the MoE staff.
EmployNZ specialises in working with 15 year olds to achieve their NCEA level 1 and 2 by offering a plan that will take them further than their 16th birthday and work with them to decide on a future pathway into higher education or training or entry level employment.
The youth courses we offer cater for 15 – 19 year olds are free for the youth as they are fully funded by the government through the Tertiary Education Commission. EmployNZ is contracted to offer these NZQA approved courses in Tauranga, Whakatane and Rotorua and we work alongside the Ministry of Education staff, local schools and parents/caregivers to design solutions for your 15 year old.
We encourage parents and caregivers to discuss the various options available with their young person after understanding that school is not the best solution for them.
It is always better if you can all make the decision together as they are under 16 so as the parent/caregiver you are still legally responsible for them. Youth will appreciate being involved in the decision making process and are able to take on the seriousness of the decision to leave school and make a commitment to other study or work and you will all be able to support each other to make the transition.
At EmployNZ we will support your young person and encourage them to honour the commitment you have all made as they learn to move towards making independent life choices about their future plans.
EmployNZ will arrange an interview with a focus on showing you all around our training centre and introducing you to our tutors, our spaces and give you a chance to see how we operate our NCEA Youth Courses.
Students can start every Monday and we follow the secondary school terms, with four, 10 week teaching weeks and use the term breaks as non contact or catch up weeks for staff and students.
If you feel that you would like to discuss your options with us please contact our EmployNZ Recruitment Coordinator on info@employnz.co.nz to organise an interview or tour or call 0800 002 159.
All 3 organisations, your School, the Ministry of Education and the Education Provider you are enrolling your young person with need to work together for the benefit of the young person so please feel free to speak freely with us all to get the information you need to make your decision about where your young person will best be served in the coming months as they make plans for their future.
EmployNZ would appreciate the opportunity to support your young person through this time, it is what we specialise in. Since 2000, we have made it our mission to support youth to gain their NCEA Levels 1 and 2 and work with them to make future pathway plans into higher education and/or employment.
Our reward is hearing the stories about what they have dome when they drop back in a few years down the track or when we meet up with them out and about in our community.
Further information can be found at the MoE website: