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Ministers and MPs are going to take on apprentices, encouraging employers to provide work as the country seeks to recover from the recession.
Conservative MP Robert Halfon asked if ministers were aware of a local apprenticeship scheme run by Essex County Council and Harlow College.
The Harlow MP said he had agreed to place an apprentice in his office from October.
During business questions, he asked: "Will you look at boosting apprentices in Whitehall and Westminster and through government contracts?"
Further education minister John Hayes replied that an apprentice will be joining him in his Whitehall office, encouraging other MPs to do the same.
Hayes said the government had already placed £150m towards the apprenticeship budget, creating 50,000 more placement opportunities.
He told MPs: "I can announce that one of them will be joining my office in Whitehall and I invite other ministers to do the same."
In other exchanges, former Liberal Democrat leader Charles Kennedy called on the government to explore ways of "mitigating" the impact of an immigration cap on universities.
He said Universities UK had raised concerns about the high numbers of university staff that are non-EU nationals, 2,500 staff at Scottish universities alone.
Kennedy asked: "What can you do with colleagues in the Home Office to mitigate the impact of this policy on the tertiary sector?"
Universities minister David Willetts said the department was working alongside the home secretary on the issue and that a "sensible approach" had been announced earlier this week.
He said the department was interested to hear from organisations affected by the issue.
Ann McKechin (Lab, Glasgow North) asked about plans for the future funding of university-based research.
Willets responded that £5.7bn would be provided, including through the University Funding Council for England and Funding Councils.
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