Engineering is one of the most satisfying and best rewarded careers in today’s changing world.
	Pay for professional engineers compares very favourably with most other professions.
	68% of all professionally qualified engineers in the UK would recommend engineering as a career to a young man and 62% to a young woman ­ and mainly cite the challenge that the job offers as the reason for doing so.
	Engineering is one of the very best foundations for making it to the top. With the exception of accountants, there are more engineers on the Boards of quoted UK companies than any other profession.

(Adapted from the Engineering Council’s website)

The GCSE in Engineering (Double Award) meets the National Curriculum programme of study for design and technology. The qualification provides a sound basis for advanced level study and progression into vocational training, for example Modern Apprenticeships, and into further and higher level education. It is a three-unit qualification (the units are the same regardless of awarding body offering the qualification). The units, which are equally weighted, cover:

Unit 1 Design and Graphical Communication (Internal assessment)
Unit 2 Engineered Products (Internal assessment)
Unit 3 Application of Technology (External assessment)

The GCSE in Engineering (Double Award) provides students with opportunities to develop skills, knowledge and understanding relevant to engineering. They will learn about the principles and processes that underpin the design and manufacture of engineered products, systems and services, and put them into practice within an engineering context. Schools and colleges can choose contexts appropriate to their own situations and that represent the diversity of engineering in a modern world.

However, the skills, knowledge and understanding that will be acquired, such as analysing and solving problems, creativity in producing workable designs, teamwork and communications are also valued in areas outside the world of engineering. The GCSE in Engineering can therefore be seen as a valuable foundation for a wide range of different career options.

The GCSE in Engineering is already being delivered in nearly 300 schools (March 2004), with over 7,000 students registered for the qualification. It has proved very popular both with the students and with teaching staff. The emphasis on the practical application of engineering theory and knowledge, particularly where this is linked to local engineering employers, provides a unique opportunity to discover just how important engineering is to the local and national economies.

The full specification for the GCSE in Engineering Double Award can been found on the websites of the Awarding Bodies offering the qualification, AQA, Edexcel and OCR, and a summary of the content can be found on this websites Qualification page.

As a career option, engineering offers the following:

Engineering needs people who

	are willing, and able, to keep abreast of new technology
	are flexible and able to cope with changing demands
	have the entrepreneurial skills needed to develop new business opportunities
	show respect for the environment solve problems sometimes by experiment
	can negotiate and compromise
	are willing to take on decisions on incomplete or conflicting data
	have manual dexterity and can make things
	are adaptable and able to take responsibility
	show respect for the environment

People in engineering teams should be able to:

	design and make products using the latest technologies
	understand value for money sometimes by using scientific, mathematical and technological principles
	use and understand structures, mechanisms, control systems and energy
	think in three dimensions
	plan and organise design, manufacture, construction and maintenance
	speak and write clearly