Good engineers are taught, not found.
The Jera Academy gives school students a start in IT and cyber security. We founded it in 2024, and run a one-year Foundation Apprenticeship for S5 and S6 students based in Midlothian and East Lothian. Students who completed it have gone on to university, and some are now graduate apprentices, studying at university on day release.
It’s free for families, and takes six hours a week, around the school timetable. The qualification sits at SCQF level 6, the same level of learning as a Higher, and the Academy is accredited by Qualifications Scotland, formerly the SQA.
Our third year
18 students
on the course in 2026/27
We kept seeing the same gap.
1What we saw
Businesses were short of people with IT skills.
It hasn’t gone away. In the UK government’s 2025 study of cyber skills, nearly half of businesses (49%) had a basic skills gap, struggling with tasks such as setting up firewalls and detecting malware.
Cyber security skills in the UK labour market 2025 →2The main cause
Schools were struggling to offer senior computing courses.
One in eight secondary pupils in Scotland goes to a school with no qualified computing science teacher, Reform Scotland found in 2024, using figures from all 32 councils.
Computing the Future, Reform Scotland, 2024 →So in 2024 we stopped waiting for those skills to turn up, and started teaching them.
We struggled to find cyber security professionals, and I knew a lot of other IT companies were in the same boat. It isn’t a single company’s problem, it’s a society problem, and society needs people to step up and help. So we set up the Academy, and we run it because it’s the right thing to do. Owning problems is part of who we are.
Students can go from school to a start in IT in four steps.
Step 1
Apply through your school
Speak to your guidance teacher or depute head first, and your school gets in touch with us. The course is for students based in Midlothian and East Lothian.
Step 2
Learn from our engineers
Lachlan, one of our engineers, leads your teaching. You learn for six hours a week, around your school timetable: online, and hands-on with our demo and training systems at our office in Straiton, Loanhead. Your council organises your transport.
Step 3
Gain a recognised qualification
You earn the Foundation Apprenticeship in IT: Hardware and System Support, at SCQF level 6, the same level of learning as a Higher. All Scottish universities recognise it as equal to a Higher, and it carries 42 UCAS tariff points.
Step 4
Choose your next step
Our students have gone on to university, some as graduate apprentices. Exceptional students will be invited to complete a Modern Apprenticeship with us, but a place isn’t guaranteed. Everyone who completes the course gets a reference from us.
Mark, our Managing Director, leads the Academy. For its first two years he taught the course, and Graeme Freeman, our Solutions Architect, was its verifier, checking that its assessments met the national standard. Mark is now the verifier, and Lachlan leads the teaching and course delivery.
What you learn
- You learn the fundamentals of cyber security, with extra cyber security modules we add to the national course.
- You find out how networks and servers work, and how to look after them.
- You work hands-on with demo and training versions of the systems we use every day, such as ticketing, auditing and monitoring, and never with a client’s systems.
- You hear about real-world IT problems and learn how to solve them, so it’s more than academic.
- You learn customer service, because a good engineer is someone people want to talk to.
Who we look for
- You’re in S5 or S6, and you’re based in Midlothian or East Lothian.
- You’re curious and you have a good attitude. You don’t need to know about computers yet, because we teach that.
Questions? Ask your guidance teacher first. Schools can reach us on 0333 358 7888.
If we can teach it to a student, we can explain it to you.
We teach customer service on the course, alongside the technology: the same standard we hold our own engineers to. No jargon, and no finger-pointing.
Students learn on our demo and training systems. They never touch your systems.
How our IT support works →Questions people ask about the Academy
What is the Jera Academy?
The Jera Academy is how Jera IT gives school students a start in IT and cyber security. Its formal name is the Jera IT Academy. We founded it in 2024, and run a one-year Foundation Apprenticeship for S5 and S6 students based in Midlothian and East Lothian. It is accredited by Qualifications Scotland, formerly the SQA. In 2026/27, our third year, 18 students are on the course. Students who completed it have gone on to university, some as graduate apprentices.
What is a Foundation Apprenticeship?
A Foundation Apprenticeship is a work-based qualification that students take in S5 or S6, alongside their other school subjects. It sits at SCQF level 6, the same level of learning as a Higher. All Scottish universities recognise Foundation Apprenticeships as equal to Highers, and this one carries 42 UCAS tariff points.
The IT Foundation Apprenticeship at apprenticeships.scot →What does the Jera Academy course cover?
It’s the national Foundation Apprenticeship in IT: Hardware and System Support. It includes a National Progression Award in Professional Computer Fundamentals, covering security, networks and servers, and five units of the Diploma for IT and Telecommunications Professionals, such as IT and telecoms system operation. We add cyber security modules of our own. The course also covers customer service, and students train on demo and training versions of the systems we use every day, such as ticketing, auditing and monitoring.
What jobs can the Jera Academy course lead to?
The national course is a first step towards roles such as IT support technician, cyber security analyst, security administrator and network manager. Our students have gone on to university, some as graduate apprentices, and exceptional students will be invited to complete a Modern Apprenticeship with us, though a place isn’t guaranteed.
The course at apprenticeships.scot →Who can apply to the Jera Academy?
Students in S5 and S6 who are based in Midlothian or East Lothian. You don’t need to know about computers already. We look for curiosity and a good attitude, and we teach the rest.
Who teaches the Jera Academy course?
Lachlan, one of our engineers, leads the teaching and course delivery. Mark, our Managing Director, leads the Academy. For its first two years Mark taught the course and Graeme Freeman, our Solutions Architect, was its verifier. Mark is now the verifier.
Are Jera Academy staff PVG checked?
Yes. Our staff are members of the PVG (Protecting Vulnerable Groups) scheme, and Jera is an accredited body with Disclosure Scotland, which runs it.
How do students get to the Jera Academy?
Their council organises their transport to our office in Straiton, Loanhead.
Does the Jera Academy cost anything?
No. The course is free for families. Students have six hours of classes a week, around their school timetable.
Do Jera Academy students work on client systems?
No. Students work on our demo and training systems, and never touch a client’s systems. They do hear about real-world IT problems and learn how to solve them, so the course is more than academic.
How do I apply to the Jera Academy?
Speak to your guidance teacher or depute head at school first. Your school will get in touch with us.
Does the Jera Academy train business teams?
No. The Jera Academy is for school students in S5 and S6.
