Written evidence submitted by EngineeringUK (COM0046)

In our response to this inquiry, EngineeringUK has drawn on data from a national sample of the UK public over seven years and on the impact of STEM engagement activities which represent the work of around 200 organisations and which have reached a half a million young people in the last year, with more still reached via the careers information we provide on and offline. Our communications activity takes a “fish where the fish are swimming” approach, using a mix of channels and delivery including face-to-face and online, that bring science alive for our key target audience of young people, reflect the real-world applications and explain what this could mean for their future (careers). Our approach of engaging communities – of schools, of employers – is helping develop science capital among young people – the UK’s future scientists and engineers.

EngineeringUK’s response addresses two key issues:

• The trends in attitudes to science and public engagement with science

• The communications strategies being taken to encourage young people to study STEM subjects in higher and further education, and to encourage those people towards STEM careers.

1. Trends in attitudes to science for young people

1.1              If we are to challenge young people’s baseline perceptions and encourage more of them into STEM subjects and careers we must make evidence-based interventions. 

The evidence base for interventions designed to improve perceptions and knowledge of STEM among young people is diverse and even occasionally contradictory. However, several themes have become apparent that inform the majority of pupil engagement strategies in the STEM community. This has led to a number of programmes based on activities that focus on improving enjoyment of STEM – especially among 11- to 14-year-olds – coupled with effective careers information and guidance linked to the curriculum. EngineeringUK’s engagement programmes, The Big Bang Fair and Tomorrow’s Engineers, are predicated on this strategy.              

1.2               The focus on enjoyment is informed by research that has shown it to be as significant as attainment in a pupil’s likelihood to pursue that subject further. A recent survey by E.ON of 16- to 18-year-olds found that they were most likely to progress their studies in subjects they enjoy (71%) than those they think will support their future career paths (29%). Research commissioned by BIS showed that “enjoying a subject is key to taking it further”. The study also noted that “after GCSEs, they get to drop the ones they didn’t enjoy and focus on the ones they prefer,” with the initial excitement and enjoyment of new subjects such as science and design and technology waning during GCSEs as difficulty increases.              

1.3               EngineeringUK’s own research has looked at student subject decision making aged 14 and 16, and identified that 89% of those asked said that enjoyment of a subject influenced their decision to select it at GCSE or A level. The ASPIRES study has also shown that, while students remain positive about science as a potentially academically-rewarding subject from Year 6 to Year 9 (10- to 14-year-olds), their enjoyment decreases year-on-year. Qualitative data suggest that the significant drop-off in Year 9 is due largely to an increasing focus on exams and written work, at the expense of practical activities – particularly in the run-up to GCSEs.

1.4               There is much evidence to suggest that the 11- to 14-year-old age group is both the most likely point at which young people can lose interest in STEM and at which interventions can have the greatest effect. Indeed, influencing young people before they choose the subjects they will study at GCSE and equivalent is the basis of most STEM intervention programmes, including The Big Bang and Tomorrow’s Engineers. The BIS study highlighted the three “key decision points” as Year 9 (GCSE choices), Year 11 (further studies decision) and Year 12 or equivalent (HE or job choices).

1.5               Aspiration is likely to be a reliable indicator of a young person’s future career, and there is a large body of evidence to show that interest in science is formed by the age of 14. Students who had an expectation of science-related careers at that age were 3.4 times more likely to earn a physical science and engineering degree than students without this expectation.

All of this evidence has led to an underlying strategy of STEM engagement which comprises three things:

• Inspiration (from employer role models and educators in STEM)
• Aspiration (to pursue STEM subjects and careers)
• Application (to STEM qualifications and careers)

1.6               Since 2010 EngineeringUK has used the annual Engineers and Engineering Brand Monitor (EEBM) to measure attitudes of young people, general public (including parents) and teachers of STEM subjects to engineering and science and careers in those professions. This has served to provide our programmes with a set of comparative national benchmarks that help us show the impact of our interventions as well as being a tool for the wider STEM community. The EEBM includes the key measure of the desirability of a career in engineering amongst 11-14s. The table below shows a positive upwards five-year trend.

1.7              Given the latest Engineering UK report shows that UK engineering is projected to have 2.56 million job openings from 2012-22, this shift in attitude is a welcome one, particularly as there is a current annual shortfall of 69,000 people.

1.8              The EEBM serves as the national benchmark for perception of engineers and engineering against which the quality and impact of outreach programmes can be evaluated. The EEBM, Engineering UK report and evaluation of existing programmes of activity form the evidence base on which we build the communications strategies to encourage more young people to pursue studies and careers in STEM.

2.  Communications strategies being taken to encourage young people to study STEM subjects - the vital role of employers

2.1              Careers inspiration sits at the heart of successful communication strategies to encourage young people to continue to study STEM subjects and to pursue STEM careers and rightly remain a core priority for the STEM community. Employers and STEM professionals can be powerful ambassadors for their industries, bringing to life classroom learnings with examples of real life application and real jobs. Results from the EEBM suggest that such inspiration and aspiration activities are bearing fruit.

2.2              Historically STEM intervention consisted of numerous organisations delivering mainly un-coordinated activities which are not tracked centrally, with limited evaluation and no measure of quality. This can overwhelm schools and deter them from engaging with external organisations and employers.  

2.3              Increasing the number and the quality of encounters employers have with young people will raise the profile of the practical applications of STEM within the workplace. The recommendation for an increase in employer encounters was laid out in the Perkins Review of Engineering Skills and amplified in research carried out for EngineeringUK by Boston Consulting Group (BCG), which identified that employers of all sizes across the country are engaged in engineering outreach activity in schools. Simply by coordinating efforts on a regional basis we can triple the number of young people we reach and inspire to become engineers.

2.4              The Tomorrow’s Engineers programme is facilitating this by providing a platform for employers to support the growth of the UK STEM talent pipeline as part of a coordinated approach aimed at improving the quality, reach, diversity and impact of their engagements with young people and encouraging them to choose the subjects that will allow them to pursue a career in engineering.

2.5              The compelling evidence base drives employer engagement. Tomorrow’s Engineers brings a strategic approach to that engagement, building bridges with an already committed part of the employer community and schools, allowing greater coordination of employer outreach to where the need and the impact are greatest. Our vision is to create a national employer network delivered locally and supported centrally that reaches 1m young people every year by 2018, with effective careers interventions from STEM employers.

2.6              A comprehensive programme that supports an increase in young people taking STEM careers, Tomorrow’s Engineers hosts a rich resource of careers materials to complements employer engagement activity. This multifaceted programme builds capacity at employer level so they can deliver impactful outreach. This builds strong, sustained relationships between the teacher and employer with both seeing the benefit and value of such a relationships to their students and business.    

2.7              More needs to be done to support teachers increasing their understanding of the opportunities a career in engineering can bring.  The Tomorrow’s Engineers website is a rich resource of information about STEM careers, including a suite of careers materials with supporting teacher notes and a career finder designed for young people.  These materials can also be used by teachers and career advisors to give them up-to-date, industry relevant information to advise young people.

3.  Communications strategies being taken to encourage young people to study STEM subjects –more than a great day out

3.1              Held annually since 2009 The Big Bang UK Young Scientists and Engineers Fair is delivered in partnership with c200 organisations across business, education and the third sector and consistently demonstrates a positive impact on young people’s likelihood to pursue STEM qualifications and interest in STEM careers.

3.2              The Fair, which is held over four days, now welcomes around 70,000 visitors each year. The activities, shows and experiments excite and engage young visitors and are complemented by positive messaging around the career opportunities maths and science can offer. Information, advice and guidance is available for young people and their teachers, parents and advisers.

3.3              We monitor and report annually on the impact of The Fair across a range of indicators such as enjoyment, desirability and knowledge of STEM subjects and careers. The example below shows the desirability indicator.

3.4              In 2015, KS3 respondents attending the Fair (60%) believed a career in engineering was desirable compared with a nationally representative sample (41%), with female respondents (52%) particularly receptive compared with their all UK counterparts (26%). The vast majority of young people agreed that they learnt a lot by visiting The Fair and around four in five KS3 and KS4 pupils said that The Fair positively changed their view of a career in science and engineering.

3.5              Young people, aged 11-19, compete at the finals of a number of national STEM competitions which take place at The Fair, including the award of the UK Young Scientist and UK Young Engineer of the Year.  The competitions showcase the commitment and skills of the young entrants, positively reinforce and publically recognise their efforts in STEM and serve as an inspiration to their peers. A national PR campaign to publicise the winners supports the promotion of science and engineering to the wider public audience, reaching up to 90% of the population across broadcast, print, digital and social media. (Brand) recognition of the Fair is particularly high among teachers at 60% recall.

3.6              The Big Bang programme comprises regional versions of The Big Bang Fair: the Big Bang Near Me programme, which has been running for five years, can demonstrate positive impact on STEM understanding and interest for young people who attend. Attracting up to 8,000 visitors each, Big Bang Near Me Fairs feature hands-on STEM activities, opportunities for young people to showcase their STEM project work and local employers who focus on careers conversations with young people.

3.7              The Big Bang @ School brings this successful model of STEM engagement into schools and puts the delivery of in-school STEM inspiration/careers fair in the hands of the teachers and pupils themselves. This year the Big Bang Near Me and Big Bang @ School programme reached 110,000 young people.

3.8              All of our work is underpinned by independent research and evaluation and we continually improve our programme delivery based on evaluation data and feedback.  For example, based on feedback from the 2014 Big Bang Near Me (BBNM) regional fairs identified the need to strengthen career messaging, so in 2015 “Meet the future you” workshops, in which young people could meet and talk to employees across a range of STEM careers, were delivered at the regional fairs increasing the desirability of a career in engineering in KS4 girls from 42% in 2014 to 59% in 2015.

4.  Communications strategies being taken to encourage young people to study STEM subjects – evaluation and improvement

4.1              The Tomorrow’s Engineers programme includes an evaluation scheme that uses as a baseline our annual Engineers and Engineering Brand Monitor, which enables us and our partners, supporters and funders to understand the impact of specific engagement activity and identify areas of good practice to share.

4.2              The programme brings together key stakeholder organisations, both nationally and locally, to coordinate and improve employer outreach, share labour market information, share effective practice and widen the employer network. Employer Support Managers (ESMs) are the face of the programme locally.  They support employers in their area to improve the reach, quality and impact of their schools engineering outreach and careers inspiration activity. There are currently 110 employers working as part of Tomorrow’s Engineers.

4.3              Evaluation of the Big Bang and Tomorrow’s Engineers programmes demonstrates the impact that well-executed employer interventions at schools can have on increasing young people’s understanding of STEM careers and their perception of the desirability of those careers. For example, 11-14 year olds attending a Big Bang Near Me fair in 2015 were 34% more likely than in 2014 to believe that a career in science was desirable.

5. Conclusion

5.1              Our research has identified a severe shortfall in the supply of graduates and apprentices required to meet the projected demand in the engineering sector in between 2012 and 2022. To help address this shortfall we have engaged in a (communication) strategy to inspire the engineers of the future, helping them understand where their school science and maths might lead them; collaboration between the engineering community, Government, education, business and the third sector is a key criterion for success.

5.2              Our work with young people demonstrates the impact quality interventions and communications can have on young people’s perception of careers in STEM and their likelihood to consider pursuing a STEM career. Engineering and skilled engineers make a significant contribution to the UK economy and its productivity as well as working towards mitigating the grand global challenges of climate change, ageing populations, food, clean water and energy. Engineering sectors produce the majority of the nation’s exports and play an essential role in supporting the UK’s international competitiveness by investing in research and development and innovation – a vital part of sustaining the UK’s long-term economic performance.

5.3              Building and consolidation of existing programmes is necessary to influence the perceptions and subject and career choices of young people positively. Programmes such as Tomorrow’s Engineers have made it evident that this is best achieved though ensuring coordinated support and partnerships via local, regional and national STEM employers. And The Big Bang Fair demonstrates the positive and wide-reaching impact a large showcase event and its associated communications campaign can have.

April 2016