Apprentice

An apprentice is a novice, usually a child or young adult, that is assigned to a master of a profession in order to learn the skills so that he will take over the work of the profession.

In mainstream Smurfs media, Brainy functions in the role of the apprentice to Papa Smurf in the study of sorcery and alchemy, while Scruple also functions in the same role to Gargamel.

In the EMPATH: The Luckiest Smurf story series, Empath functioned in the role of an apprentice in village leadership to Papa Smurf, having been trained by both Brainy and Hefty until he was capable enough of taking on the role of the assistant leader without any supervision. His similar role, the assistant counselor, is an apprenticeship to Papa Smurf in matters of personal counseling.

There are notably other types of apprenticeships. During the time when Brainy's father Aristotle supposedly came back from the dead when most of the Smurfs were under the influence of the Auld Lang Syne Spell, Aristotle offered Brainy an apprenticeship in book publishing, which made Brainy decide that he would terminate his existing apprenticeship to Papa Smurf.