Didn't they used to call those situations where you worked with an experienced tradesman for 3 or 4 yrs whilst attending college an apprenticeship?

Yep.

They did in my day,worked for kitchen firm did city & guilds in Carpentry and joinery on day release...Gaz

Some places do still do apprenticeships, but nothing like the scale they used to do years ago, when Gaz was a lad

Now a days, apprenticeships are seen as a way to pay young lads and lasses rock bottom wages while supposedly training them up on the job, with a day release for college.

these are known as Modern apprenticeships and they pay the individual £80.00 a week with one day release to college

Did a three year apprenticeship Painting and Decorating. By the end of the three years I could memorise 15 mens butty orders, how many sugars in tea and which sauce they wanted on them. Can't complain though, good days.
I can just imagine telling a "Modern apprentice" to go the shop for butties.

Because you are very young when you do an apprentiship, you get all the crap jobs like making the teas, cleaning up, washing down all the gear and when youve mastered all those skills you are then their grout bitch, a lot of the time you are just messing about. when you are 16 and 17 your mind is not set like an adult. When retraining as an adult, you can aquire the skills much faster if you are practically minded to start with and willing to learn

I really could of done with my own grout bitch the other day