This is Engineering Day is a campaign led by the Royal Academy of Engineering in collaboration with EngineeringUK that aims to show more young people what engineering really looks like – and why it can be a rewarding career path.
The day is an exciting example of industry, educators and government working hand-in-hand to ensure we’re challenging stereotypes and providing real-life examples of engineering in action.
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That’s important because the UK faces a major shortfall in engineering skills. For example, new research commissioned by Amazon shows that the UK needs on average 21,000 more computer science graduates every year – or the economy could lose up to £33bn per year by 2030. In addition, EngineeringUK estimates the UK is short of 59,000 engineering graduates and technicians to fill core engineering roles each year.
At Amazon, we know that careers in engineering are incredibly varied and rewarding. We want to play our part by overhauling perceptions of what engineering looks like and attracting future engineers into the profession – no matter what their background is or their start in life.
That’s why we launched Amazon Future Engineer in the UK this year, a comprehensive childhood-to-career programme that aims to inspire, educate and enable children and young adults to try computer science. Amazon Future Engineer includes free robotics workshops and fulfilment centre tours for primary schools, teacher training and funding for secondary schools, plus bursaries and apprenticeships for post-18 education. The programme is set to reach more than one million children and young people across the UK over the next two years.
So if you’re keen to get involved with This Is Engineering Day, here are a few ideas.