STEM Careers Assembly
Boosting students’ knowledge of STEM careers and local companies
Turn your interests into a career in engineering
When we talk about Engineering, we are looking into so many different areas: from aerospace & aeronautical (which is fast growing in the North East) to software and computing. All these different sectors offer a big range of career opportunities and can be access via so many different different routes!
A good way to start thinking about a future career (in engineering and elsewhere) is to ask yourself what interests you and can you turn it into a career?
For example, the This is Engineering campaign form the Royal Academy of Engineering mentions the following areas of interest as pathways to engineering careers:
For example Alan Proud is from the North East and works as a Senior Orthotic Technician at Peacocks Medical Group. He took an apprenticeship into engineering and describes himself as being a creative person.
Here is a bit more about Alan’s job
Engineers and STEM people skills
At NUSTEM we are big advocates of talking about STEM attributes. In fact we have often like to talk about 15 attributes which are common to every STEM worker (on the left). Developing these attributes or skills in school and through education will make you more employable.
| Passionate | Self-motivated | Collaborative |
| Good communicator | Creative | Curious |
| Imaginative | Patient | Open-minded |
| Observant | Organised | Hard-working |
| Resilient | Committed | Logical |
Engineering in the North East
With so many diffrent areas of engineering comes many diffrent types of jobs. Some studies such as Engineering UK, is predicting that by 2030 there will be 173,000 new engineering jobs across the UK. Given that the North East has such a strong engineering heritage some of these jobs will come to our region. Here is a interesting fact for you: currently one in every five workers in the North East has an engineering-related job.
It is hard to know the exact number of engineering companies across the North East but there big local employers such as:
which will employ engineers. If you click on the name of these companies you will be directed to their own careers hub.
You can also do a web search of Engineering Jobs in the North East of England and explore what is currently available across the region.
Universities and Apprenticeships
If you think you want a job in Engineering and University is in your plans, you have 5 local universities offering different engineering courses. Below you can find links to their offers:
- Northumbria University Engineering Courses
- Newcastle University Engineering Courses
- Sunderland University Engineering Courses
- Durham University Engineering Courses
- Teeside University Engineering Courses
If you want information about apprenticeships please have a look at our apprenticeships assembly further down this page.
More information about Engineering and Engineering Careers
You can find more information about Engineering and Careers in Engineering at:
The Institution of Engineering and Technology
Access a pre-recorded version of this assembly
This assembly has been pre-recorded and can be requested by staff in schools with the view to show it to pupils during assemblies. We kindly ask you to fill in a short form which will allow us to monitor the reach of our activities. After submitting the form, an acknowledgement message will appear on the screen with a link to the pre-recorded version of this assembly.
In the news
Terms such as energy crisis, global warming, net zero, carbon capture are becoming more familiar to us and often seen in the media. All of these terms are linked with climate change. The fact of the matter is that humans and their activities are influencing the climate patterns of our planet. For example is well documented that in the past years the average temperature of the planet has risen. We have seen glaciers retreating and the sea level rising.
Plenty of renewable energy but we need to get better at harvesting it!
On way to adapt to climate change is to drastically cut greenhouse gas emissions by develop further technologies that will help us use renewable energy resources more efficiently.
The good news is that there is plenty of energy available from renewable sources. According to the National Geography, one hour of sunlight received by the Earth’s atmosphere could generate enough electricity to meet demands for everyone in our planet for an entire year!
Energy Sector in the North East
According to the North East Energy Catalyst, a partnership which brings together amongst others, local companies and educational institutions, the North East is at the forefront of tackling the current energy challenges, especially in areas such as off-shore wind, geothermal and electrification.
Here is a video which summarises their vision.
It is estimated that by 2025 there will be 9000 jobs in the Northeast linked with off-shore wind technologies and by 2050 the UK could generate 35 000 jobs linked with geo-thermal energy.
Some local companies working on the energy sector
Below you can find some of the North East Companies that are part of the energy sector. Some of the links direct you to the company’s careers page, so that you get an idea of the type of jobs being advertised.
Local company: POWER ROLL
Power roll is a company based in Durham which is on mission to produce affordable solar panels which one day might cover many different types of surfaces. What makes the company so unique is the fact that they manufacture flexible solar panels in a roll.
Here is a video explaining how their solar panels work:
To be able to operate the company hire amongst others :
- Ink formulation Scientists
- Material Research Scientists
- Mechanical Engineers
- Quality control technicians
Local Colleges and Universities
If you think a job in the energy sector could be a possibility, you might want to consider tailor your education towards this sector. As mentioned by Invest North East there are plenty of options. For example:
NE Colleges:
- Newcastle College offers up to Level 3 qualifications on Renewable and Subsea Engineering
- Northumberland College offers vocational courses on Offshore and Renewable Energy
NE Universities (Northumbria, Newcastle, Sunderland, Durham, Teeside):
Offer undergraduate STEM degrees (see for example Mathematics Physics & Electrical Engineering or Construction and Mechanical Engineering at Northumbria University).
RENU: Renewable Energy Northeast Universities
As mentioned above, research is fundamental to help us develop technologies for greener, cleaner and affordable energy. With this in mind 3 of our local universities (Northumbria, Newcastle and Durham) are collaborating with local companies to increase the number of graduate people working in the energy sector.
At northumbria for example our researchers are working on on 3 different strands of technology:
- Inorganic materials for solar cells
- Organic materials that emit light
- Bio-materials that help decarbonise systems
You find out more about what the current research at Northumbria is by watching the video below.
Apprenticeships in STEM
As of August 2022 there are around 692 000 people in the UK currently doing an apprenticeship. Apprenticeships are a great way to get hands-on experience of a job, to get paid and to work towards a formal qualification.
Many of these apprenticeships will be in areas related with Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). In countries such the UK there is a shortage of people with the right skills to fill in all the STEM job vacancies and more and more employers are investing in recruiting apprentices.
Training the right people with the right skills
For example, the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) has reported that 1 in 2 engineering companies find it hard to recruit the right people with the right skills and 1 in 4 engineering companies are recruiting apprentices and graduates and train them. Given that there are over 3500 engineering companies in the North East of England, there are plenty of opportunities for engineering apprenticeships alone.
Companies in the North East with STEM apprenticeship schemes
Many of top employers in our region run apprenticeship schemes. We have put together a list of who they are and where to find further information about the apprenticeships they offer (just click on their names and you should be redirected to the relevant website)
- Nissan – vehicle manufacturer
- Arriva – public transport
- Bellway – housebuilder
- The Sage Group – software developer
- Sterling – pharmaceutical
- Greggs – bakery chain
- Northumbrian Water Group – water and sewerage
- NHS – healthcare
- Network rail – transport
You can also find more about apprenticeship in the NHS and Network rail by watching the videos below
The list goes on and its impossible for us to signpost you to every single opportunity. That said there are a few useful websites to look into:
If you are a teacher or part of a careers team in school, please get in touch with us and we will signpost you to a recorded 15 min assembly on this topic.
