Warwick secures funding to encourage future engineers

Warwick University, in collaboration with the Talent 2030 campaign, has received £25,000 of funding to encourage more students to choose a degree in engineering and manufacturing. This initiative has been launched following the publication last month of the _Great Expectations_ report by the Council for Industry and Education (CIHE) which identified the need to encourage and nurture talent in these areas in order to protect future UK competitiveness.

Talent 2030 and Warwick are particularly interested in encouraging girls talented at Mathematics and Physics to start taking engineering degrees. This was after a survey undertaken by the report revealed that less than a third of girls taking STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects were studying degrees in engineering or manufacturing. Less than ten per cent of the UK’s current engineers are women, which is the lowest figure amongst EU member states. Talent 2030 director and former President of the National Union of Students (NUS) Aaron Porter stated how this needed to change. “If we want the UK economy to fulfil its potential but, more importantly, allow women to go on to the careers they want, we need to challenge the male dominance in parts of these industries.”

The survey supported this idea, as it suggested that the pre-conception of engineering is that of a male-dominated and tedious field. This perception is one the campaign looks to target. Talent 2030 will be looking to carry out the suggestions of the report that career advice regarding these fields of study needs to be improved in schools in order to achieve this. Other propositions to interest girls in engineering include highlighting its significance in dealing with environmental concerns. Porter advised that “finding out that these are the very same industries which will be at the heart of the solutions for newer, greener and more sustainable energy is a huge draw.”

The report already had a close association with Warwick University; one of the chairs of the task force was Professor Nigel Thrift, Vice Chancellor of the University. He echoed the words of Porter when he stated that “we need to encourage more women to pursue careers in engineering and manufacturing. If we continue to fail to make use of the talent of more than half the population we will fall behind our international competitors.” The funding that the University has now secured will go towards accomplishing the report’s proposal that universities increase their promotion of placements and internships in the targeted courses.

The University has received its funding for these projects from the National Higher Education (HE) STEM programme. The programme helps fund schemes they believe to have a high chance of long term success in helping promote and improve the teaching and studying of STEM subjects.

“We are delighted that the first Talent 2030 collaboration between the University of Warwick and the National HE STEM programme has secured £25,000 worth of funding to focus on dedicated outreach to schools in the West Midlands,” continued Porter, who is hoping that the trend set by Warwick will continue elsewhere. “We are now hoping that more employers and universities will want to collaborate or contribute to similar projects elsewhere across the country.”