Overview
The Science Education Tracker 2023 is the third in a series of studies which track evidence of more than 7,200 young people’s experiences of and attitudes towards STEM education and careers. The surveys are nationally representative with the sample drawn from DfE databases of all young people in England in state-funded education (the National Pupil Database and the Individualised Learner Record).
This additional analysis report links students’ answers to the survey with their NPD and ILR records. This allows us to look at the data by SEND status, FSM eligibility, and if English is spoken as an additional language. The report also includes some regressions to understand the demographic predictors of young people considering a career in STEM. It also contains two segmentations investigating the underlying patters in the population of young people with respect to interest in science and computing.
This research was developed in partnership with the Royal Society and was undertaken by Verian.
Who this is for
- Careers leads
- Policymakers
- Researchers
- STEM outreach organisations
- Teachers
Key findings
- SEND students are no less interested in science at school, but they are less likely to rate themselves as ‘good’ at the subject.
- SEND students are less interested in science and maths careers, but are equally interested in an engineering career and more interested in a technology career.
- Students eligible for FSM are generally less interested in science at school and in pursuing a science or STEM career.
- FSM-eligible students are less likely to have opportunities to engage in science at school or in higher education. They are also less likely to have wider connections to STEM and higher education through their parents or family.
- Students whose first language is not English are more likely to be interested in, enjoy, and rate themselves highly in science and computing. They are also more likely to aspire to STEM careers.
The technical report on the methodology of the data is also available.
The data throws up some positive findings and it's great to see both SEND and non-SEND students as equally interested in a potential future engineering career. It’s also fantastic to see so many SEND students with careers interest in tech where we need a vast talent pool. We must ensure our future engineering and technology workforce are not only well prepared for future roles but are made aware of opportunities and entry routes in to training and employment.
— Becca Gooch, Head of Research at EngineeringUK
