Social mobility in the engineering industry
Our research briefings highlight the impact socioeconomic background, parental educational status, and region have on the views young people and their parents have of engineering, and on the make-up of the engineering workforce. They give an overview of social mobility in engineering, both in terms of educational pathways into the industry and the workforce as well as considering the implications of policy reforms.
Levelling up engineering
Published in January 2022, this briefing provides an overview of young people’s and their parents’ knowledge and perceptions of the different routes into engineering careers drawing on regional insights from EngineeringUK’s latest Engineering Brand Monitor survey. The briefing draws attention to the regional variations in this knowledge and the perceptions of different routes, and discusses what this means for routes into the engineering workforce. It finishes with a series of questions for policymakers to consider in light of the forthcoming levelling up white paper.
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Social mobility in engineering
This briefing, published in November 2018, provides an overview of social mobility in engineering, both in terms of educational pathways into the industry and the existing workforce. It considers the potential implications of recent policy reforms, presents trends in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) educational attainment and participation among those from disadvantaged backgrounds, and reflects on how these impact on their employment outcomes. It also examines the barriers to participation in engineering and highlights various strategies being implemented to overcome them.