Are Entry-Level Jobs the First Casualty of AI? Are V Levels Going to Meet Employers’ Needs? FE Soundbite 838
Welcome to FE Soundbite Edition 838: 14th March 2026. Are Entry-Level Jobs the First Casualty of AI? What Three Sectors Are Telling Us on the Future of Skills.. and will V Levels meet employers’ needs?
This is the weekly e-newsletter and e-journal by FE News: ISSN 2732-4095. We know life is busy, so here’s a snapshot of the latest announcements and epic thought leadership articles from sector influencers and thought leaders across FE and Skills this week on FE News.
Gavin’s Reflective Perspective
Big news this week was the announcements on V Levels, T Levels and large mixed study programmes… and the timelines. More on this in a bit.
First, I want to look at an exclusive roundtable feature that I think was particularly eye-opening on the impact of AI on jobs, from three very different sectors, and what this means right now for skills.
How are three different industries seeing AI impact jobs and the skills needed?
So while the majority of the sector was pawing over the latest on qualification reform… and those timelines! … we had a really fascinating piece of sector intelligence land on FE News. Alison Morris, Director of Policy at Skills Federation, brought together voices from three very different industries to explore what AI is actually doing to jobs and skills right now: Jake Wall, Policy Manager at techUK covering tech, software and IT; Claire Tunley, Chief Executive of Financial Services Skills Commission on financial services; and Lee Higgins, Sector Intelligence Manager at Enginuity on engineering and manufacturing.
So are there any common trends across three seemingly very different sectors? The short answer is yes… and they should matter to anyone designing curriculum, planning apprenticeship delivery or thinking about what “job ready” actually means in 2026 and beyond.
Entry-level roles, long the training ground for new talent, are under real pressure. This was also flagged by the Office for Budget Responsibility in the supporting documents for the Spring Statement last week, so this is not just a sector conversation… it is showing up in the national economic forecasts.
Less than 0.2% of all job adverts mentioned AI in any meaningful way
Interestingly, Lee Higgins from Enginuity noted that job ads referencing AI skills have increased, but from a very low base. Last year, less than 0.2% of all job adverts mentioned AI in any meaningful way. Now in the world of AI, a few months is a long time, but that stat is telling. It suggests that the way we describe and advertise roles has not kept pace with what AI is already doing within those roles.
Jake Wall from techUK highlighted just how much AI is impacting UK tech businesses. More routine work is being automated or heavily augmented with AI, with workers shifting from doing tasks manually to overseeing and orchestrating AI outputs. The pattern runs from customer operations and HR through to cybersecurity, with people using their domain knowledge to turn AI output into real professional and business decisions.
Junior positions with structured, repeatable tasks are most likely to face contraction
On entry-level roles specifically, Jake flagged that junior positions with structured, repeatable tasks are most likely to face contraction, and that these are often the early-career roles that have historically served as training grounds. He was careful to say this does not mean entry-level jobs are disappearing entirely, but the bar is shifting… graduates are increasingly expected to arrive with AI literacy and strong human skills.
So with those insights fresh in mind… let us look at the V Level and T Level announcements from this week. Which made me think… is the system set up to respond at the pace these industries say they need? This is qualification reform, a redesign, so are we thinking for the future and an agile qualification system that meets industry needs or prepares for the agility of industry needs? We are rethinking qualifications, are we rethinking or recalibrating what is the end goal? Is it to HE, to be job-ready, or a mixture? Basically, is this major qualification reform, all the effort, money and time… Is it flexible enough? Does it deliver the qualifications that employers, learners value and need?
Very ambitious time line: V Levels Coming in 2027
Now the V Level roll out is going to be fast. Young people will be able to take the very first V Levels in education, finance, and digital in 2027. This is a brand new qualification, a new brand of qualification, new training and development, and new resources by next year! That is ambitious!
Rob Nitsch, CEO of the Federation of Awarding Bodies, said about the timelines “it does not feel that there has been a response to the over-riding warnings from Awarding Organisations and others that the ambitious timetable introduces excessive risk”… and “Taken with the tight timeline for V Levels and the changes at Level 2, this amounts to a huge amount of work and investment. I know that the Sector will do its best to respond, but the extent of these changes should not be under-estimated.” In otherwords, this is tight timing, and the investment expected from Awarding Organisations is HIGH!
V Levels will have 360 guided learning hours
V Level design will have 360 guided learning hours, which at present, is the same number of hours as an A Level. Could this change… answer is, dunno! The Government has backtracked on a few things in wider policy (like winter fuel payments, etc.).
Mix and Match Model
Now the reason for the 360 hours , is no doubt, because learners can take what I would call a mix and match approach, a V Level and A Level mix.. but T Levels are still stand alone and equivalent to 3 A Levels or 3 T Levels. Now I think this is great; learners have long wanted to take a mix of quals alongside an A Level. So this to me is a good thing… I think a mix-and-match model is great for learners… and learner choice… but how does it fit into the bigger picture? Rob Nitsch from FAB highlighted: “There will also be disappointment that there is not more clarity on the criteria that will define where and how V Levels might be linked – this will be important for subjects in which 360 Guided Learning Hours is insufficient for a credible qualification”.
Shelf Life of a V Level… remember ABS??
This is significant, like major qualification reform. Just last week on Defunded, Not Derailed live stream Rob Nitsch also pointed out, are V Levels also of interest to retain for other political parties? With a general election due by August 2029 (at the latest). What lessons could be learnt from Advanced British Standard… which was totally scrapped by the Labour Government… now V Levels will be live and kicking come election time, but could this be a qualification and skills debating ground in 2029 (or before)? Now people loved what Rob had to say in Ep1 of Defunded, Not Derailed, so we have brought him back for Episode 2 on Thursday 19th on Curriculum Planning!
So really interesting food for thought, particularly the investment and time asked by Awarding Organisations on the design and development of V Levels… and are they going to be agile enough to meet the skills needed for the fast changing world of work (particularly if even job ads are not reflecting the skills needs that are fast emerging in three different industries)?!
I hope you enjoy FE Soundbite this week
Epic Exclusives Thought Leadership Articles
Our Top 3 Thought Leadership Articles This Week
The Future of AI and Skills: An Industry Perspective By Alison Morris, Director of Policy at Skills Federation; Jake Wall, Policy Manager at techUK; Claire Tunley, Chief Executive of Financial Services Skills Commission and Lee Higgins, Sector Intelligence Manager at Enginuity
Becoming a Centre for Apprenticeship Assessment Delivery: Guidance for Training Providers By Sarah Sutcliffe, Consultant at ProAssess
Embedding the new Ofqual Principles into the Everyday By Jacqui Molkenthin from JEML Consulting
This week, we also had some other Epic Exclusives!
16 Years Old and Earning more than Mum and Dad By Matt Dowling, Founder and CEO of the Freelancer Club
Scrolling Through the Evidence: The Case For By Neil Wolstenholme, Kloodle Chairman
What’s New in the World of FE?
Annoucements
First V Level Subjects Revealed: What You Need to Know By the Department for Education (DfE)
The Defunding Timeline: What Providers Need to Know about V Levels By FE News
Sector Leaders Warn 16 to 19 Funding Rise Falls Short as Student Numbers Surge By FE News
Ofsted Calls for Better College Support for Learners in Care By Ofsted
Students Given Stronger Protections Against Rising Extremism on Campus By the Department for Education (DfE)
Schools, Colleges, and Universities to Receive £40.5 Million Additional Maintenance Funding In Wales
1,500 more 16-to-18-year-olds to Receive Financial Support By the Welsh Government
Report
Industry Warns of “Time-Critical” Skills Crisis without lack of bold reforms By MakeUK
Voices
The Secret to Mature Student Success: What Providers Must Get Right By James Kennedy, Executive Director at Global Banking School
Can V Levels Improve SEN Attainment By Heather Akehurst OBE, Chief Executive Open Awards
Retrofitting the nation: Why skills will decide the UK’s net zero success By Tracey Patmore is Head of Product at NOCN Group
Learning where to apply AI is critical for training to deliver productivity By Mo Isap OBE, CEO of IN4 Group
The power of human connection through peer support By the Mental Health Foundation
In The Know
We have two Collective Intelligence events planned for 2026… aka Collectives
We have big plans for upcoming Collectives, and you can get involved. One is on SEND in April… and another on NEETs in June. We have learnt a lot from the Green Mindset Collective and we are drawing from this on how to give people more voice, more influence on the report… and to make the report more action focused (the Green Mindset Collective had a playbook for people to use, not just a dusty report that is never accessed, but something usable as a takeaway for the entire sector).
On 24th April 2026, at Tavistock Square in London, join us for the Bridging the SEND Transition Collective in partnership with ETF
Join us for the Breaking Barriers Collective event in partnership with Edge Foundation, working together collectively to solve the NEET puzzle.
These aren’t conferences; these are collectives. These aren’t lectures or chalk and talk, but interactive: it’s rolling up your sleeves and making real change, where you get involved and actually give real input. These are two massively important Collectives, so join us and help shape the report and sector response!
By Danny O’Meara, Operations Manager, FE News and