Desperate to leave school and earn a wage? You wish they'd stay on and go to Uni?
The big engineering companies - Fluor, KBR etc etc - run Modern Apprenticeships. Nearly always they are for 18 year olds and graduates but they can - and do - take ambitious 16 year olds. They finance them through college and, for their top students, finance them on through Uni.
Approx Earnings: At 16: £12k At 19: £19k Semi-qualified HNC/D at 20: £40k - or age 23 third year at Uni £27k Fully Qualified £60-£80k
They'll need a reasonable head for maths, and be prepared to travel all over the world :)