Press Release

New Survey finds deep misconceptions of engineering among young people that could worsen shortfall in engineers

Findings of the first ever nationwide report into public attitudes and perceptions towards engineers and engineering, launched today, revealed that 2 in 3 young people know very little about engineering and almost 3 in 4 don’t understand what engineers actually do.

This could have serious implications if it affects their future career choice as the UK’s output of engineers is already stagnating.

"Misconceptions and misunderstanding of engineers and engineering are arguably the key fundamental cause of difficulties in recruiting young people to train, study for and develop their careers in the engineering field " John Morton, the ETB’s Chief Executive, said.

"We are using this research as a benchmark to help us understand perceptions and identify ways in which we can improve understanding and undertake further work to promote opportunities in the profession. 

"With chances to get involved in life changing projects ranging from developing the Thames Barrier or the Olympic Village to creating bio fuels and being at the forefront of latest technology such as digital radio, there’s never been a better time to get involved in engineering. 

"We need to find more ways in which we can get this message across and raise the profile of the sector” he continued.

"This is the first real data we have ever gathered of public attitudes to engineering and it’s given us a very clear message that we need to do more to demonstrate our role in society" said Dr Scott Steedman, Vice President of The Royal Academy of Engineering. "If Government is to achieve its vision of the knowledge economy it’s vital that we enthuse young people.

"We need to be more joined up across the profession, our campaigns need to be much more visible and we personally need to be more outspoken about the value we bring and the contribution we make both to improving people’s lives and to the economy "

The Engineering and Technology Board (ETB) and The Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) jointly commissioned BMRB Social Research and BMRB Stakeholder to conduct research  exploring public attitudes to, and perceptions of, engineering and engineers. 

Although engineers were generally respected and rated well compared with lawyers and the medical profession amongst older people, the use of the term “engineering” to describe activities as diverse as financial engineering and car repairing, meant that many younger people were confused about what engineers actually do.

This led younger people to score engineers the lowest for their participation on resolving major world issues such as climate change or vaccine development.

Positive attitudes amongst all age groups, towards engineering were based on a belief that engineers are responsible for providing many of the things people rely upon in their everyday lives such as transport, electricity and buildings.

Encouragingly, the survey found that increased information about engineering resulted in increasingly positive attitudes due to a greater awareness of its true nature, diversity and impact on contemporary society. 88% of young people and 92% of all age groups believed that engineering makes a good contribution to society.