Category : News

• Only 12% of girls say being an engineer fits well with who they are
• Just 16% of girls think an engineering career is suitable for them
• Opportunities for practical science are particularly important for less engaged students
• Only a quarter (26%) of GCSE students doing practical work at least every fortnight
• Interest in science has declined and a gender gap has opened up
• 36% of girls say science is not for them

A stark gender gap in young people’s interest in engineering and science and a sharp decline in practical science have been identified through a new survey by the Royal Society in partnership with EngineeringUK, with support from Wellcome.

The third Science Education Tracker (it was previously run in 2016 and 2019) included specific questions about engineering for the first time in this 2023 survey. The tracker looked at the responses of 7,000 young people around their attitudes to and experience of science education and careers. The results make worrying reading given current and projected future workforce shortages across engineering and technology.

Engineering careers are seen as creative and versatile by most school students and over half young people believe they could become an engineer if they wanted to. However, interest in engineering careers drops as students progress through school (55% of year 7 students compared to 39% of students in year 13). For those not interested in a STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) career, girls are more likely than boys to say this is because they don’t enjoy the subjects (57% vs 41%) and that they don’t feel they are good at them (38% vs 20%).

Across all age groups, boys report much higher knowledge of engineering careers than girls and are more likely to say engineering is something for them. Only 12% of girls say being an engineer fits well with who they are compared to 38% of boys. And just 16% of girls think a career in engineering is suitable for someone like them, this is up at 44% of boys.

Doing practical science is the key motivator to learning science (52% of year 7 to 9 students), with girls statistically more likely to say this. Yet, opportunities for hands-on practicals are in decline in school, with only 26% of GCSE students doing practical work at least once a fortnight. 70% of students across secondary schools say they want to do more and the appetite for more practical work is higher among students who are generally less engaged with science. This includes students who say they aren’t interested in science or who see science as ‘not for me’. 32% of young people in years 7 to 13 are in the ‘not for me’ group and this group is more likely to include girls. Indeed, 36% of girls say science is not for them.

Extra-curricular activities boost young people’s interest in continuing their STEM education. Half of students who visited a business said they were inspired to continue with STEM subjects and 45% of those who had a talk at school from someone working in STEM said the same. Yet just 43% of students had STEM extra-curricular activities in the previous year. STEM related work experience is also very low. 15% of young students had done a STEM related work experience, with a further 26% keen to do so but unable to secure a placement.

Dr Hilary Leevers, Chief Executive of EngineeringUK says: “We need hundreds of thousands more people entering STEM careers to get on track to meet net zero, to improve sustainability, and for the UK to prosper. The findings of the tracker are a serious wake-up call. We need to do more to keep young people interested in STEM as they progress through school and build their understanding of the opportunities available to them.

Government must work on ways to ensure the teaching of science, maths and computer science is more engaging for all students and builds confidence in the subjects, particularly for girls. We must also ensure that all students have careers experiences that highlight opportunities in areas like engineering, that are barely visible in the current curriculum.

The engineering community also needs to step-up and help young people see the range of opportunities for them in engineering and technology. We can inspire them and encourage them to continue with STEM. Where possible we should also be helping to offset the decline in practical lessons by offering hands-on activities.”

Professor Ulrike Tillmann FRS, chair of the Royal Society’s Education Committee, says: “The wonderful thing about science is that it has a practical side. It is not just in your head, you can touch and feel it – whether in the classroom or as part of everyday life. Access to effective hands-on learning that students can tangibly connect to the real world will help make science feel more relevant and meaningful and provide valuable skills for life and work.”

The Science Education Tracker report and further information is available at www.engineeringuk.com/set.

For full details of the awards go to www.ied.org.uk/awards.  Nominations for all five awards are welcomed.  If you have any questions please email ied@ied.org.uk.  

‘SUPPORT, INSPIRE, ACHIEVE’ AWARD receiving the Gerald Frewer Memorial Trophy

The Gerald Frewer Memorial Trophy is presented annually for outstanding contributions in the field of engineering design, design management, education and training or design philosophy. 

Please note: self-nominations ARE NOT allowed for this particular award.

THE HILLS MILLENNIUM AWARD

The Hills Millennium Award is presented annually by the Institution to an international designer who has made a major contribution to the professional areas of Engineering Design, and/or Product Design, which is in line with the aims of the IED. 

Please note: self-nominations ARE NOT allowed for this particular award.

PROMOTION OF DESIGN AWARD

The Promotion of Design Award was introduced in 2009 to award an individual or team for their work in promoting engineering design to a wider audience.

Please note: self-nominations ARE NOT allowed for this particular award.

THE ALEX MOULTON AWARD

The Alex Moulton Award is an award introduced to acknowledge innovation and inspirational design.  Council thought it only fitting that the award be named after Dr Alex Moulton, Honorary Fellow and designer of worldwide acclaim.

Please note: self-nominations ARE NOT allowed for this particular award.

Please send the name of the person/group/product to be nominated along with a summary as to why they have been nominated to ied@ied.org.uk. It would also be useful for you to include links to relevant websites/news articles. We also require contact details for the nominated person/group/designer of the product so that we can contact them to advise if they have been selected as the winner. 

THE GEOFF KIRK YOUNG MEMBERS AWARD

The Geoff Kirk Young Members Award was introduced in 2011 by Professor Geoff Kirk to mark his time as President of the Institution. The aim of the award is to recognise up and coming young members of the Institution, to highlight their career to date and to promote the future of engineering to the wider membership.

A nomination form is available for this award.  Please email ied@ied.org.uk if you would like a copy.

Please note: self-nominations ARE allowed for this particular award.

DEADLINE FOR RECEIPT OF NOMINATIONS – 7 APRIL 2024

Alastair has served in many senior volunteer positions within BCS for the past ten years, and also runs a successful professional services and IT consultancy firm.

Alastair succeeds Gillian Arnold, who remains actively involved with BCS as Immediate Past President. Daljit Rehal, Chief Digital & Information Officer for HMRC, has been appointed Deputy President. His presidency coincides with the 40th anniversary of BCS receiving its Royal Charter from HM Queen Elizabeth II.

Alastair’s extensive experience in information technology means he is a strong advocate for BCS. As well as being on the Board of the Engineering Council, he holds board appointments with other IT organisations, such as the Institution of Analysts and Programmers and the Trustworthy Software Foundation.

Commenting on his appointment, Alastair said “The value of professional registrations – especially Chartered status for technologists – is something I will strongly advocate for, with the support of Gillian, Daljit and the BCS executive team.”

For full details, please visit the BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT website.

Could you be recognised in 2024 for your outstanding environmental work?

Do you know a deserving colleague who has recently gone above and beyond to protect or enhance the environment?

The Society for the Environment (SocEnv) is now welcoming nominations for the 2024 edition of the prestigious SocEnv Awards. Recognising outstanding individuals who have innovated, inspired, and have gone beyond what’s expected in their recent work to protect, preserve, or enhance the environment, there are two prestigious awards up for grabs:

2024 Environmental Professional of the Year

2024 Rising Star

This is your chance to inspire the next generation, to recognise the skills of your peers and to remind one another why we’re here, doing what we do and striving every day to make a difference to the environment.

The reining Environmental Professional of the Year is Claire Wansbury CEnv, AtkinsRéalis Fellow and Technical Director Biodiversity. Reflecting on her 2023 achievement a year on, Claire said:

“It was such an honour to win the 2023 Environmental Professional of the Year award. I have been fortunate during my career, and particularly in my current role with AtkinsRéalis, to work on some incredible initiatives and projects. It is easy to take what we do day to day for granted, but we can all make a real difference. For anyone considering applying or proposing a colleague in future for one of the awards, I would absolutely encourage you to do so. It is a simple process and allows us to celebrate the efforts and achievements of our profession.”

2022 Environmental Professional of the Year, Becky Toal CEnv, Managing Director Crowberry Consulting Ltd said:

“It’s a fantastic validation of the creative effort of an environmental and sustainability manager, recognising the valuable input to society and communities of your knowledge, skills, and competencies. As the owner of Crowberry Consulting Ltd, it has led to new business opportunities. For anyone who would like to nominate or self-nominate I encourage you to go for it!”

Video nominations

SocEnv is committed to being an inclusive organisation. We are accepting video nominations again this year to make our application process more accessible to a wider range of professionals. Please visit the SocEnv Awards page for more details on video nominations.

Submit a free nomination

Nominees for both awards must be registered as a Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv), Registered Environmental Practitioner (REnvP) or Registered Environmental Technician (REnvTech). However, nominations can be submitted by anyone, including self-nominations.

Visit the 2024 SocEnv Awards page to download the guidelines, find out further details, and to learn more about the previous awards winners.

Submit your nomination here: socenv.org.uk/socenv-awards

Nominations for the SocEnv Awards are open until 09:00 BST on Wednesday 17^th April 2024.

Now is the time to gain some well-deserved recognition! Nominate yourself or a well-deserved colleague for free, today.

The Engineering Council would like to congratulate Dr Kelly Loukatou CEng MIET who has received the Women’s Engineering Society (WES) 2023 Karen Burt Memorial Award for best newly qualified female Chartered Engineer.

The Karen Burt Memorial Award recognises the importance of Chartered status and the award winner’s excellence and potential in engineering practice as well as contributions made in the promotion of the engineering profession.

Dr Loukatou was nominated for the 25th Karen Burt Memorial Award by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) in recognition of her accomplishments in renewable energy projects. She has been involved in both UK-based and international collaborative research and the creation of Long Duration Energy Storage systems to store excess energy created by renewable sources and aid in the take up of renewable technologies. As an Energy Insight Lead, within the Strategy and Regulation Department of the National Grid ESO, she leads energy storage and flexibility activities to design pathways to achieve decarbonisation targets to meet Net Zero in 2050.

Passionate about attracting women to the engineering profession, Dr Loukatou is involved in activities to promote the achievements of her female colleagues at National Grid ESO. She also has a prominent role in an international mentoring programme and was shortlisted for the University of Manchester’s Volunteer of the Year award in 2019.

Nominations for the WES Karen Burt Memorial Award are made by professional engineering institutions (PEIs), who may nominate one newly Chartered Engineer per year.

If you are a female CEng and would like to be considered for the award, please contact your PEI. Nomination forms will be sent direct to the PEIs by WES, but if you have any questions about the Karen Burt Memorial Award or the nomination process, please contact Karen.Burt.Award@wes.org.uk.

The Engineering Council would like to congratulate registrants Titi Oliyide CEng MIET and Adrienne Houston CEng MIET, who were announced as recipients of this year’s IET Young Woman Engineer of the Year Award at a ceremony in London on 7 December.

Titi Oliyide, a Senior Process Safety Engineer at Supercritical Solutions, is the winner of the Young Woman Engineer of the Year Award. Titi’s expertise lies in technical process safety, where she assures and designs safety systems and processes for innovative hydrogen production technology, contributing to the energy security strategy and the UK’s net zero plan for 2030. As an advocate of engineering as a profession, she is actively encouraging more people to pursue it as a career.

Adrienne Houston, owner of Eurovacuum Products Ltd, is the recipient of the Gender Diversity Ambassador Award. Now in its fifth year, this lifetime achievement award recognises Adrienne’s hard work in promoting engineering to young girls from all demographic areas, who want to pursue STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) careers. Supporting gender equality and inclusivity, she ardently contributes to the advancement of women, helping to pave the way for a more diverse and inclusive engineering profession.

We would also like to congratulate finalist, Georgina Andrew EngTech MICE, one of six candidates shortlisted for the Young Woman Engineer of the Year award. Georgina is a Civil Engineering Graduate Apprentice at Amey Consulting, working as a designer for projects covering structural maintenance to major road bridges. She is responsible for providing sustainable engineering solutions that promote safety, journey time reliability and connectivity between areas, improving some of Scotland’s busiest roads. As a STEM ambassador, she has worked on several initiatives promoting the engineering profession to the younger generation.

The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) celebrates the work of young women engineers for their work in modern engineering and help change society’s perception of a predominantly male-led career by banishing outdated engineering stereotypes of hard hats and dirty overalls. As well as putting the spotlight on talented women engineers, the awards seek to address the science and engineering skills crisis prevalent in the UK by promoting the profession to more young women. According to EngineeringUK, women make up only 16.5% of those working in engineering occupations.

Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at the IET, Dr Laura Norton said: “It’s vital we champion engineering careers to the next generation – it’s a diverse, creative and exciting career, which offers the opportunity to change lives, or even the world.”

The full list of award winners and finalists is available on the IET website.

Congratulations to Dr Nausheen Mehboob Basha CEng MIMechE, who has been announced as the winner of the 2022 Most Distinguished Developing Career Achievement Prize by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE).

The award recognises developing engineers who have demonstrated innovative and responsible professional leadership, with the potential for future distinction and commitment to serving others.

Dr Basha, a highly accomplished researcher in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Imperial College London, has been recognised for her significant academic achievements, including research into screw compressors and her current focus on mechanical engineering in the process industry. She has authored numerous publications in the areas

Her PhD research on computational fluid dynamics modelling of oil-injected compressors has received recognition from the Institute of Refrigeration (IOR).

An advocate for equality and diversity in engineering, Dr Basha devotes a lot of her time to inspiring other young women and minority groups to take up science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects.

Dr Basha has written articles on subjects such as cultural barriers for women in STEM, wage gaps, and gender inequality in engineering. Her contributions have earned her a place in the Top 50 Women in Engineering (Inventors & Innovators) by the Women’s Engineering Society (WES).

As well as her research, she is involved in organising placements and work shadowing programs to provide students with invaluable first-hand experiences in engineering careers.

Read more on the IMechE website.

Three young women engineers have been recognised at the Institution of Engineering and Technology’s (IET) Young Woman Engineer of the Year Awards for their work in engineering.

IET Young Woman Engineer of the Year: Titi Oliyide (32) is a Senior Process Safety Engineer at Supercritical Solutions. Titi provides technical process safety expertise for innovative hydrogen production technology to facilitate the energy transition, whilst contributing to the energy security strategy and the UK’s net zero plan for 2030.

IET Mary George Memorial Prize for Apprentices: Jade Kimpton (22) is an Apprentice Substation Engineer at National Grid. Jade carries out maintenances on substation assets and is involved in the commissioning of new renewable generation connections. She repairs and replaces assets to ensure the electricity supply around the UK remains reliable.

Women’s Engineering Society (WES) Prize: Zainab Adigun (31) is a Senior Structural Engineer at Pell Frischmann. Zainab manages a small engineering team that develops and delivers engineering solutions for clients. She is responsible for undertaking structural design and analysis, as well as coordinating, managing, delegating and implementing structural designs with a range of building requirements.

On winning, Titi said: “I can’t believe I’ve been named the 2023 Young Woman Engineer of the Year, joining an incredible line-up of outstanding women who have come before me. I am really passionate about demystifying and promoting the industry, and this gives me an amazing platform to introduce more young people to the world of engineering and show them how they can make a difference in the world through this impactful profession.”

Finalists Georgina Andrew, Krystina Pearson-Rampeearee, Laura Hoang and Evi Viza were all highly commended. All winners and finalists will play an ambassadorial role for the engineering and technology professions in the forthcoming months, promoting engineering careers to more girls and young people.

Now in its fifth year, the Gender Diversity Ambassador Award, which recognises an individual’s hard work in achieving gender equality within the engineering industry, was awarded to Adrienne Houston. This lifetime achievement award aims to showcase innovation and good practice to compliment the YWE Awards, by recognising the support and encouragement of women in STEM careers.

During her career, Adrienne has worked tirelessly to promote engineering to young girls from all demographic areas, who want to pursue STEM careers. Adrienne is someone who actively promotes and supports gender equality and inclusivity, and actively contributes to the advancement of women, helping to pave the way for a more diverse and inclusive engineering profession.

Adrienne is the owner of Eurovacuum Products Ltd, which she established in 2012, specialising in vacuum and low-pressure compressor systems. Her company was born out of discrimination she suffered at the time of becoming a mother. She recognised the talent of a diverse workforce and built and fosters an inclusive company culture.

The IET’s Young Woman Engineer of the Year Awards celebrate women working in modern engineering – and aim to help change the perception that engineering is predominantly a career for men by banishing outdated engineering stereotypes of hard hats and dirty overalls.

As well as highlighting the talent of women engineers, the awards seek to find role models who can help address the UK science and engineering skills crisis by promoting engineering careers to more girls and women. Just 16.5 per cent of those working in engineering occupations are women (source: Engineering UK).

Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at the IET, Dr Laura Norton said: “Engineering and technology have been improving our world and shaping our future for centuries. Engineers make an ongoing difference to the world around us, and we want to celebrate those engineering a better world for us all.

“However, due a lack of understanding around what engineering is, perceived gender norms and not enough visible role models for the next generation, the UK has a shortage of women engineers.

“Our awards tell the stories of incredible women engineers who are changing our world for the better and I’d like to congratulate our fantastic winners and finalists this year. They are a real credit to the engineering profession and make excellent role models to young girls who might be thinking about a career in engineering and technology.

“It’s vital we champion engineering careers to the next generation – it’s a diverse, creative and exciting career, which offers the opportunity to change lives, or even the world.”

The winners were announced at the IET Young Woman Engineer of the Year Awards ceremony on 7 December at IET London: Savoy Place.

This year’s YWE Awards were sponsored by Airbus, Collins Aerospace, Frazer-Nash Consultancy, Leonardo, London Stansted Airport, MBDA, National Grid, Northrop Grumman, Ofcom, Royal Air Force, RS Components Grass Roots and Thales.

To find out more information, please visit www.theiet.org/ywe.

In response to the Department for Education (DfE) releasing new full year (2022/3) apprenticeships data for England on 30 November 2023, EngineeringUK has run an analysis on the data related to the engineering and technology sector.

Engineering related apprenticeship starts have decreased by 2.4% since 2021/22, however this decrease is smaller than was seen across all-sector subject areas (3.5%). Engineering related apprenticeship starts are also still lower than they were before the pandemic – down 7.7% since 2018/19. Level 2 apprenticeship starts in engineering related apprenticeships have decreased by 22.6% between 2021/22 and 2022/23.

Beatrice Barleon, Head of Policy & Public Affairs at EngineeringUK, comments:  

“The latest apprenticeships data paints a concerning picture for the engineering sector and for the prospect of growing the UK’s engineering workforce to address acute skills shortages. With apprenticeship starts in the engineering sector down since last year, it is becoming clear that a lot more needs to be done to make apprenticeships a success story.

“Particularly concerning is the decline in Level 2 apprenticeship starts by almost a quarter (22.6%) since last year, alongside a reduction in numbers of young people aged 16-19 taking up apprenticeships since 2017/2018. Lower-level apprenticeships at Levels 2 and 3 offer opportunities for young people from a wide range of backgrounds to access jobs in engineering and tech. We need to see more opportunities available at these levels so that more young people from all backgrounds are able to join the engineering and tech workforce, providing the capacity and skills the sector desperately needs.

“We will continue to play our part in growing and sustaining engineering and technology apprenticeships, including taking forward the recommendations from our recently published 5-point plan.”

The full analysis from EngineeringUK can be found in our research section.

The inquiry report ‘Fit for the future: Growing and sustaining engineering and technology apprenticeships for young people’ can be found here: http://www.engineeringuk.com/fitforthefuture

The MacRobert Award is the UK’s longest-running and most prestigious national prize for engineering innovation.

The MacRobert award honours the winning organisation with a gold medal, and the team members a cash prize of £50,000. The presentation of the Award recognises outstanding innovation, tangible societal benefit and proven commercial success.

Past winners have included the engineers behind innovations such as the Pegasus jet engine, catalytic converters, the roof of the Millennium Dome and intelligent prosthetic limbs. Originally founded by the MacRobert Trust, the Award is now presented and run by the Royal Academy of Engineering, with support from the Worshipful Company of Engineers.

For further information please click here

Nominations for the 2024 award are now open, until 5pm, Wednesday 31 January, 2024.

Submit your nomination here

Supported by the Worshipful Company of Engineers.