“If you weren’t interested in university, it was almost as if you were ignored. There just wasn’t the information available for any other routes.”

That’s what apprentice Jessica Morris told the Scottish Parliament’s Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee this week.

Morris, who is doing a construction and built environment apprenticeship, also shed light on the poor quality of careers advice in schools, saying: “I received my first and only careers meeting three weeks before I went on exam leave in sixth year.”

Plastering apprentice Elliot Ruthven had a similar experience. “Everything was pushed down the university routes,” he told MSPs. “The careers advice was, if you were going to uni, you were given ‘Right, these are the grades you need’ - and that was sort of it.

“Whereas, if you wanted to go down an apprenticeship route, you were just sort of left to find out what you wanted to do.”

But Daniel McKelvie, a construction and built environment apprentice, and Liam Clark, a carpentry and joinery apprentice, both said that the support was there in schools - if you asked for it.

The group were sharing their experiences as part of the Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee’s inquiry into the construction industry. The committee is attempting to understand the challenges the sector faces, including how successful it is at attracting talent and meeting skills shortages.

More widely, the Scottish government is trying to connect pupils with the information they need about alternatives to university.

First minister Nicola Sturgeon launched Scotland’s Apprenticeship Network this week, and the flagship Developing the Young Workforce Programme is already creating more vocational options and encouraging closer cooperation between schools and colleges.