IN2SCIENCEUK
in2scienceUK works by leveraging the expertise and passion of local scientists, engineers, and technology and maths professionals to unlock the potential of young people from low-income backgrounds.
ACTIVITIES
- Inspirational work placements and mentoring, delivered by STEM professional volunteers
- Workshops on STEM careers and employability skills, delivered by STEM professional volunteers
- Skills days on university access, to help build understanding of different subjects, and universities.
START OF THE PROJECT
03.01.2011ORGANISATION
in2scienceUKCOSTS
Approx. £200,000 p.y. (largest costs are staffing and student bursaries, awarded to every student on the programme to cover travel and food costs during their placement)IMPACT
In 2018 in2scienceUK placed 300 students alongside STEM professionals in London, Oxford and Cambridge. Students complete 1-2 week placements during the summer, in addition to workshops and skills days designed to increase their professionals skills and confidence around STEM, and provide advice and support around university application and admission. 46% of our students progress to top tier universities, as opposed to 11% of their peers on free school meals. in2scienceUK students show a significant increase in confidence and enjoyment of STEM.TARGET GROUP
16-18, no family history of attending university in the UKPARTNERS
- Universities, like University College London, Kings College London, Oxford University and others
- Research institutes, like the Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging Institute of Neurology, UCL
- STEM businesses, like Abcam, Roche and others
KEY LEARNINGS
- Young women are increasingly making up the majority of our participants and are growing in number even in STEM areas they were traditionally poorly represented in, like engineering and physics. We continue to consider how we can differently do outreach to young men.
- The experience is also of great value to our hosts, who gain experience in supervision and mentorship, and genuinely enjoy the fresh perceptive young people bring to their work places.
- As we begin to expand outside of London, we are learning what regional needs will impact how we deliver our programme.