The current state of engineering

 

Welcome all ages to meet apprenticeship targets, says Engineering UK 2007.

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The Engineering and Technology Board (ETB) has launched Engineering UK 2007, its annual review of the engineering and technology labour market.
 
The report includes facts and figures on engineering education, graduate recruitment, registration and salary levels. The review also focuses on engineers in the economy, public perceptions of engineering and engineering skills. 
 
It highlights concerns over government targets for doubling the number of apprenticeships by 2020, and also underlines the need for government, business, industry and the wider engineering community to work together to improve further education for the benefit of the economy. 

Increase in chemistry, physics and maths numbers

This year’s report details a number of positive findings within the education sector, including a slow but steady growth in the number of pupils taking chemistry, physics and maths A Levels and passing GCSE maths. Other positive key findings include a rise in young women sitting GCE A Level Chemistry (50 per cent). In fact, the proportion of pupils passing GCSE maths at grades A-C had also risen to 55 per cent this year.
 
However, the report also reveals a 26 per cent decline in the number of learners. The proportion of female engineers remains low with women accounting for about three per cent of apprentices and a similar proportion of registered engineers. Furthermore, the report detailed that the number of registered engineers has declined by 21,500 in the past decade.
 
Engineering UK 2007 also reveals a 16 per cent decline in the number of 16-year-olds by 2018. This decline, coupled with increasing rates of participation in Higher Education, will leave a rapidly decreasing pool of potential apprentices to fulfil the Government’s ambitious target of a 60 per cent increase in apprenticeships by 2010/11. The average age of registered engineers is increasing with a quarter of current CEngs aged over 65.
 
Dr John Morton, Chief Executive of the ETB, said: “Whilst the ETB welcomes recent Government investment in apprenticeships across all ages, many more apprenticeship places need to be made available for the over 25s in order to combat the 16 per cent decline in school-leavers by 2018. In order to remain globally competitive, the engineering sector needs to attract career-movers and people in their twenties and thirties as well as highly motivated young people.
 
“The ETB believes that the long-term solution to shortages of skilled engineers lies in Government, business, industry and the wider engineering community working together to widen access to engineering training at all levels and for all ages groups, as well as increasing capacity in the Further Education sector to cope with the demand created by current apprenticeship targets.“ 

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