There are a wide range of engineering education opportunities offered through FE colleges, apprenticeships or work based learning.
We work with partners to explore new approaches to teaching and learning in the post-16 sector.
T Level in Engineering and Manufacturing
Recent reforms have sought to rationalise this landscape into two major routes – A-level equivalent T-levels and Apprenticeships, both of which have specialised Engineering routes. The Academy is working hard with government, employers and providers to ensure the success of these reforms.
We have worked with the engineering community to identify core content for T Level in engineering.
Evaluation of University Technical Colleges
University Technical Colleges (UTCs) are schools for 14 to 19 year olds that deliver an education which combines technical, practical and academic learning.
The Academy and the Edge Foundation commissioned the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) to evaluate the project-based learning and employer-informed curriculum development and delivery aspects of UTCs between January 2017 and December 2018.
Students can study a technical specialism alongside core academic subjects at GCSE and A-level. Two important elements of the UTC model are the involvement of employers in the curriculum and the use of project-based learning.
Read more about this work to to evaluate UTCs in our report Evaluation of University Technical Colleges.
Read more about our work to tackle the challenge for some
UTCs to attract girls in significant numbers in our report Opening up new opportunities for girls in University Technical Colleges
Engineering Facilities in Colleges
The expense of installing and maintaining equipment, particularly for engineering, is a significant cost factor for FE colleges in providing technical education.
There is no overarching guidance for funders or college leaders as to the equipment needed by a college to deliver broad engineering education and training. Although some awarding bodies make suggestions for equipment with qualification specifications, this is not always explicit or clear.
To address this issue, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Gatsby Charitable Foundation have worked with FE colleges to identify the basic equipment that would be expected to be found in any setting offering engineering education and training at Level 3.
Read more about this work in our Engineering Facilities in Further Education colleges report.
