http://www.engsc.ac.uk/nef/news/centre/index.asp The Higher Education Academy - Engineering Subject Centre is a national centre providing subject based support for the UK higher education engineering community in the area of learning and teaching. en-gb webmaster@engsc.ac.uk http://www.engsc.ac.uk/images/logos/logoheaesc.gif http://www.engsc.ac.uk 111 44 Engineering Subject Centre specific News items http://www.raeng.org.uk/news/releases/shownews.htm?NewsID=551 The Royal Academy of Engineering's new fundraising campaign, making things better, has made a flying start with gifts of £5.5 million already announced in its first few days from donors including Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah, and some highly regarded global engineering companies including BAE Systems plc, BP plc, National Grid, Petrofac Services Ltd and Shell International Ltd. The campaign aims to raise £16.5 million to create a national forum for engineering in the Academy's Carlton House Terrace building and to attract more young people into engineering roles. (Courtesy of The Royal Academy of Engineering) http://www.raeng.org.uk/news/releases/shownews.htm?NewsID=550 Professor Sir Bernard Crossland FREng has received one of The Royal Academy of Engineering's most prestigious awards the Sustained Achievement Medal for his contribution to engineering education research work into high pressure engineering and his influence in both the UK and Ireland in forming links with industry and academia in a career spanning seven decades. During his retirement he has also made a significant contribution to public service playing a leading role in high profile investigations including the Kings Cross Underground Fire and Ladbroke Grove Rail Disaster. (Courtesy of The Royal Academy of Engineering) http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2010_0054 Increased transport funding is to be given to the most rural areas in England to help young people study the Diploma. Iain Wright said today that the investment would build on the progress already being made in rural areas to deliver the 14-19 reforms by ensuring that young people living in rural and semi-rural areas - where public transport systems may be less developed, and where there are greater distances between schools and colleges - were more easily able to travel to centres to study the Diploma. The funding is part of a £90 million package to be handed to local authorities in England to help them prepare to deliver the Government's historic 14-19 reforms ahead of the 2010/11 academic year. (Courtesy of the Department for Children, Schools and Families) http://nds.coi.gov.uk/content/Detail.aspx?ReleaseID=411770&NewsAreaID=2 The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF)welcomed the publication of the report from the Science for Careers Expert Group. Science and Innovation Minister Lord Drayson said: "Young people have a natural sense of wonder about the world. We must tap into it so today’s students and pupils are inspired to blaze a trail in science careers. "The range of opportunities to discover science is amazing. Whether at our world-class universities and colleges, or through vocational opportunities such as modern apprenticeships, it’s vital to provide young people with clear advice and information on acquiring the skills needed to succeed. "We’ve made significant progress in recent years to improve careers advice in our schools, colleges and universities. In Higher Ambitions we outlined how we wish to build on this and will now also consider the recommendations in this excellent report." (Courtesy of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills) http://www.engsc.ac.uk/downloads/scholarart/20100223-socio-centric-mp-report.pdf This is a short report by Dr Tania Humphries-Smith about a mini-project undertaken at Bournemouth University (funded by the Higher Education Academy Engineering Subject Centre) on the development of a web-based learning and teaching resource specifically aimed at the socio-centric dimension of sustainable design (the resource can be found at www.sociocentricdesign.com). The report sets out the content, arrangement and web-interfaces for the learning and teaching web-based resource which focuses on the socio-centric dimension. http://www.sigma-cetl.ac.uk/index.php?section=100 Nominations are being sought for the award of two personal prizes to individuals who have made outstanding contributions in the fields of mathematics and statistics support. These prizes are being awarded by sigma, Centre for Excellence in Mathematics and Statistics Support. The following personal prizes will be awarded by a specially convened Panel: - One prize of £1000 to an individual employed in a higher education institution (UK or overseas) who has made a sustained contribution to mathematics and/or statistical support – the sigma Outstanding Contributor 2010 - One prize of £1000 to an individual employed in a higher education institution (UK or overseas) who has made a notable contribution to mathematics and/or statistical support at an early stage of their career – the sigma Rising Star 2010 More information can be found at: http://www.engsc.ac.uk/downloads/scholarart/100126-honeybee-final-report.pdf This is the final project report of the mini-project 'HoneyBee: Evaluating Glamorgan’s Work-Based Learning Initiative', funded by the Higher Education Academy Engineering Subject Centre, and carried out by Lenira Semedo, Loretta Newman-Ford, Stephen Lloyd and Stephen Thomas of the Faculty of Advanced Technology at the University of Glamorgan, South Wales. The project found that schemes such as HoneyBee have the potential to attract people into higher level engineering and improve the employability of engineering undergraduates. The study investigated the development of new, practical and transferable skills through real-life work experience, recommending that other Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) can equally develop flexible, innovative and responsive WBL schemes within their engineering degree programmes in order to meet the demands of both employers and undergraduates. http://www.cogent-ssc.com/Higher_level_skills/asn.php Following the call from HEFCE for Employer Co-funded ASNs for 2010-111, Cogent2 seeks to review and support suitable applications from providers that meet our sector needs. In particular, Cogent would be willing to review and consider any submissions relating to the following areas: Low Carbon (Nuclear, Oil and Gas, Chemicals) Life Sciences (Pharmaceuticals and Chemicals) Advanced Manufacturing (Industrial Biotechnology, Chemicals, and Polymers) Cogent industries have a preference for short post-graduate level provision, to meet the need for continual professional development in these emerging technology markets, but will not discount any valid offer that employers would like to see supported. Working directly with Higher Education on a number of programmes, we have been made acutely aware of the need to improve the funding mechanisms available to both employers, their employees, and for the providers of education and training. As such, we welcome the opportunity to support providers that seek to deliver flexible pathways through education for those wishing to enter employment, and those already in employment, in the Cogent sectors. For more information, please contact either: Dr Caroline Sudworth (caroline.sudworth@cogent-ssc.com) or Dr Brian Murphy (brian.murphy@cogent-ssc.com) http://www.nmi.org.uk/publications-and-downloads/press-releases/nmi-announces-uk-electronics-skills-foundation-to-address-threat-of-diminishing-skills The National Microelectronics Institute (NMI) has announced the creation of the UK Electronics Skills Foundation (UKESF) to address the threat of diminishing skills in the UK electronics sector. The foundation aims to increase and sustain the supply of industry-ready graduate engineers and boost career take-up in the sector. NMI CEO Derek Boyd said, “The dramatic decline in the numbers of Electronic Engineering graduates will present the country with a long term issue if left unchecked. We’ve identified the underlying problems in the existing skills pipeline which undermine the future prospects of the industry and UKESF has been created to tackle the major issues. Its goal is to ensure that the sector is supplied with the quality of talent to enable it to continue to be innovative, competitive and able to provide high-value jobs to support the wider economy.” http://www.raeng.org.uk/news/releases/shownews.htm?NewsID=545 The Athena Forum has launched its Signposting Career Paths for Post Doctoral Researchers guide and bookmark at the Royal Academy of Engineering. The initiative is championed by two female Vice Chancellors - Professor Alison Richard of the Universities of Cambridge and Professor Shirley Pearce of Loughborough University. The aim of the guide is to respond to the two most frequently heard comments from women at the postdoctoral level, by providing accessible, useful and practical advice for individuals starting their careers. Professor Steve Rothberg, Dean of Engineering at Loughborough University, said: "Research staff in the STEMM disciplines will play huge roles in delivering economic recovery and future prosperity to the UK. Among them are the academic and business leaders of tomorrow. Over the last three years we have significantly increased our efforts in support of their career development with a range of targeted initiatives including dedicated careers and professional development support and we are delighted to be championing this vital initiative from the Athena Forum with its special focus on women scientists and engineers." (Courtesy of The Royal Academy of Engineering) http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/feb/11/university-tuition-fees-increase-thinktank The quality of university degree courses will "seriously deteriorate" unless annual tuition fees are raised to at least £5,000, a study by a right-of-centre thinktank warns today. Policy Exchange said last week's announcement of £449m in government cuts to higher education – equivalent to a reduction of more than 5% – made increasing fees, which are currently capped at £3,225 a year, all the more urgent. The study also warns that the high cost of providing loans to all eligible students means the government's £25bn student loan debt could soar to £55bn in eight years' time if fees only rise in line with inflation. (Courtesy of Education Guardian) http://nds.coi.gov.uk/content/Detail.aspx?ReleaseID=411033&NewsAreaID=2 Higher Education Minister David Lammy commenting on the Association of Graduate Recruiters, graduate recruitment survey said; “Employment rates for graduates continue to be higher than for those with lower qualifications. This research shows that there are areas of growth in the jobs “Of course students may be concerned, which is why we are working hard to show that real opportunities are available to them including work, further study, volunteering and Internships. Internships are great way for graduates to kick start their careers by gaining the valuable skills and work experience at a time when they face a more competitive job market. “We currently have over 6,500 vacancies including over 4,000 that are paid, advertised on our Graduate Talent Pool website http://graduatetalentpool.direct.gov.uk, a free service matching talented graduates with businesses offering internships.” (Courtesy of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills) http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/feb/09/university-applications-reach-record-levels More than 200,000 would-be students are likely to be left without a place at a UK university this year as undergraduate applications reach record levels for the fourth year running. Applications are almost a fifth up on last year, according to the latest figures from the university admissions service, Ucas. So far, more than 570,000 students have applied for a place at university this autumn, an increase of more than 100,000 on the same time in 2009. Applications close in June. There was also bad news today for those leaving university this year, as a business body warned that new graduates face a "double whammy" in the jobs market: a continuing fall in the number of vacancies available and no increase in average starting salaries for those who do manage to gain employment. (Courtesy of Education Guardian) http://www.stemprogramme.com/CollaborativePracticeTransferFund/tabid/124/Default.aspx To support the transfer and wider adoption of proven good practice within the HE STEM sector, the National HE STEM Programme is making available funding to those from HEFCE and HEFCW funded Higher Education Institutions to share proven evidence-based interventions directly related to its three strands of activity. This funding opportunity is designed to support those within the HE sector who wish to adopt particular approaches, resources or ideas within their own institutions that they have identified exist elsewhere. It is also available to support the transfer and embedding of related good practice identified or disseminated by, amongst others, the Engineering Subject Centre. http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/jan/21/record-new-students-ucas A record number of students took up places at university last year but the percentage of applicants who were accepted dropped, figures released todayreveal. And universities could face a multimillion pound shortfall after taking on 12,000 more entrants than the government said it would fund. Ministers faced criticism in the summer for cutting costs by capping the number of places available despite a 10% increase in applications, fuelled in part by the recession. Overall, some 481,854 students were given places to start in September, an increase of 5.5% on the year before, according to today's official figures from the university admissions service, Ucas. But while 78% of applicants got a place in 2008, only 75% did in 2009. The number of new students from the most disadvantaged areas rose by 8.4%. (Courtesy of Guardian Unlimited) http://www.jorum.ac.uk A new service developed by Jorum allows free access to quality learning resources developed by the UK higher and further education community. The Engineering Subject Centre will be depositing learning resources created as part of the Open Engineering Resources project. http://www.raeng.org.uk/news/releases/shownews.htm?NewsID=542 The UK will not be able to achieve its target of reducing carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 unless it urgently addresses carbon emissions from the built environment, according to a report published by the Royal Academy. Buildings currently account for 45 per cent of our carbon emissions but it is estimated that 80 per cent of the buildings we will be occupying in 2050 have already been built. Many 20th century buildings are totally dependent on fossil fuel energy to make them habitable - in the 21st century buildings must be designed to function with much lower levels of energy dependency. The scale of this challenge is vast and will require both effective Government policy and a dramatic increase in skills and awareness in the construction sector. Michael Dickson FREng, Chairman of the Happold Trust who supported the report, said: "Under the guidance of The Royal Academy of Engineering, Professor Doug King has delivered a significant report on the teaching of building physics to the engineers of tomorrow and which will help to achieve the low carbon world that we seek for the future." (Courtesy of The Royal Academy of Engineering) http://www.engsc.ac.uk/us/fundopps/student_awards_tutor.asp Get your students writing! This essay competition is open to all undergraduate students studying for a degree in engineering. Students are asked to express their views about how they are being taught and have the chance to win £250. This year students are being asked to use their imagination, put themselves in their tutors’ shoes and answer the question ‘imagine you are an engineering lecturer for a day: how would you teach your students?’ As in previous years, we expect to gain some fascinating student’s eye insights! http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2009/nov/09/tuition-fees-rise-review-universities The former chief executive of BP was today appointed to run a comprehensive review of the top-up fee system amid warnings from students against a hike in tuition costs. Lord Browne will chair the independent review, which has been charged with examining the impact of tuition charges on who goes to university and the growing cost of universities to the public purse as student numbers expand. It begins today and has cross-party support. Ministers and their Conservative shadows have all indicated that they expect students to be charged more at the end of the review. The review was promised as a last-minute sop to rebel Labour MPs who, in 2004, threatened to reject the bill introducing the higher £3,000 a year fee. It will not report until after the election, prompting accusations that the government – and opposition – are avoiding making the controversial decision about fees a doorstep issue in the run up to a vote. (Courtesy of Guardian Unlimited)