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Engineering

Research careers and find opportunities in engineering

About

The sector is diverse with a wide range of disciplines and a variety roles. There is great demand for graduates with engineering skills due to a skills shortage in this sector.

According to a 2021 report from the Institution of Engineering and Technology, 49% of employers were having difficulty recruiting people with the right skills.

There is a trend in the manufacturing sector for companies 'reshoring'. Production is returning back to the UK to address the supply-chain issues seen during the pandemic.

Roles and skills

The range of companies and sectors you can work in is huge and can suit graduates with a variety of skills. Some roles, such as materials engineer, are open to graduates from a number of engineering and science disciplines.

Job profiles

Have a look at Prospects and targetjobs to find out what roles in this sector involve and how to get into them. Some of the job profiles available include:

Manufacturing and Processing

Skills employers look for
  • excellent problem-solving, maths and IT skills
  • strong technical knowledge and proficiency in specialist software, such as computer aided design (CAD)
  • good communication skills and the ability to convey complex information to non-technical colleagues
  • the ability to plan, prioritise and manage projects effectively
  • a commitment to keeping up to date with new developments
  • leadership skills and the ability to work in multi-disciplinary teams

Be inspired

It’s not always easy to know which roles to apply for. The resources in this section can help you find inspiration from previous students and know where to get further support.

Inspiration from people working in the industry
  • browse our Work Experience and Graduate Employment directories. See where our students and graduates have had work experience, or been employed
  • use LinkedIn’s Alumni tool to find out what Newcastle graduates are doing now. You could ask to connect with them, to gain advice and insights into their career. See Newcastle Alumni on LinkedIn to help you get started or watch our quick tutorial on Getting inspiration from others [3:13]
  • attend alumni events, such as Newcastle Develop, to hear directly from our graduates
  • sign up for mentoring support with Graduate Mentor and The 1 Hour Project. These aim to match students with industry professionals who can provide invaluable insights. Register to be connected for a one-hour meeting
  • attend , including recruitment fairs and employer and sector insights. Hear about graduate jobs, placement schemes, build your network and ask questions
Online reviews

Searching for reviews online can be a useful way to get an idea of what to expect from certain roles or employers. Reviews are written by employees with different opinions about what makes a good employer.

Use the following review sites for inspiration and insight into the recruitment process:

Glassdoor – company reviews from employees

Not sure what you want to do?

If you’re not sure exactly what you want to do, we can help. You can book a guidance appointment via MyCareer. Our careers consultants can help you explore your options or plan your career.

Explore career planning advice
Making career choices
Exploring your options

Sector and industry insights

Researching the industry is essential, whether it’s to:

  • help you decide which area to work in
  • identify who to apply to
  • tailor your application
  • impress an interviewer with your knowledge of the sector

Here are some resources to help you get started.

Career guides

Read career guides for this sector, such as:

The Institution of Engineering and Technology – engineering career guide

On Shore and at Sea is our guide on finding work experience for marine technology students, created in partnership with the School of Engineering.

Listen to the 'How to get a job in F1' podcast to find out more about engineering opportunities in Formula 1. 

Industry news

Use online magazines and journals to follow news from your industry. Reading about trends and developments is important for applications and interviews.

Examples include:

Attend events

Attend events to hear directly from professionals in the industry. For example, RAS: Careers in Aerospace LIVE, an annual recruitment event in November.

See our  page for upcoming events, including recruitment fairs and employer and sector insights.

Student societies

Join engineering - specific student societies, including:

Societies often organise and promote events and invite guest speakers to talk about their careers.

 

Social media

Use social media to find industry insights

Join sector-specific groups on LinkedIn to keep up to date. Posts often include news, events and opportunities. You can also find useful insights on careers on X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok. Treat these with caution, as not all content may be accurate.

Find out more about how to use social media for your career.

Professional bodies

Consider joining a relevant professional body/industry network

Professional bodies often:

  • run networking events
  • have specialist groups you could join
  • offer career advice
  • provide information on scholarships and funding
  • post vacancies on behalf of their members
  • have member directories, useful for speculative applications

Key organisations include:

Finding professional bodies worldwide

GoinGlobal’s country guides include details of professional bodies. Find them under ‘Professional and Personal Networking’ on each individual country guide.

 

Guide to finding opportunities

Many large engineering companies, such as Cummins or Babcock, advertise summer internships, year-long placements and graduate training programmes.

You can also find opportunities within government agencies and public bodies. You could join the Civil Service Fast Stream through the Science and Engineering stream.

There are various ways to find internships, placements and graduate opportunities. We’ve added some tips below to help you get started.

  • search for advertised vacancies using the vacancy sites listed below
  • look at the careers sections on company websites for student and graduate opportunities. Use Researching Employers to help you gain insights into companies
  • attend develop your skills such as recruitment fairs and employer and sector insights
  • contact employers speculatively – see  to help you find organisations to approach
  • follow companies on  for latest news and updates
  • consider registering with a recruitment agency for graduate jobs
  • register with EmployAbility if you are disabled, neurodivergent or have a mental health condition. They can offer advice and support on applications to Newcastle students. They also run first year, internship and graduate programmes with inclusive employer partners.
  • ask family and friends if they have any useful contacts who may be able to offer you work experience
  • consider alternative ways to find relevant experience and develop your skills
  • create your own opportunity by starting your own business or working freelance

 

Advertised work experience

Placements and summer internships are usually aimed at undergraduate students in and above their second or penultimate year of study. Some companies will also consider first and final year students.

When to apply

Apply for advertised opportunities as early as possible.

UK applications typically open early in the academic year from September or October. Some close as early as November-December. Many employers close applications as soon as their places are filled.

Search for internships and placement years

Use our resources to get started:

Search the following external sites for more opportunities:

IAESTE offer eight to 12-week technical summer placements overseas, which are open to postgraduates and undergraduates in second year of study and above.

RISE offer a summer internship program for undergraduate science or engineering students to carry out research in Germany.

 

NCL Internships

The Careers Service runs flexible term-time and summer internships with local employers and on campus. NCL internships are aimed at all students, from any stage.

Search for these under Vacancies on MyCareer. Type in ‘NCL internship’ into the text search box.

  • You can find these advertised throughout the academic year. Full-time summer opportunities are advertised from around March.

 

Worldwide experience

Access GoinGlobal for internships in over 120 global locations, updated daily. Search for opportunities in the local language, as well as in English. You can also use their country guides to find:

  • additional vacancy websites
  • CV, application and interview advice
  • Advice on living and working in different countries and cities around the world.

 

Looking for ideas

If you’re looking for inspiration, try searching our NU Work Experience Directory. You can see where our students have had internships and placements in the last five years. To see all results in a search category, keep the search field blank.

Advertised graduate opportunities

When to apply

The resources in this section advertise both graduate jobs and graduate schemes. See our graduate jobs page to understand the difference between them.

For graduate schemes, apply as early as possible.

UK applications typically open early in the academic year from September or October. Some close as early as November-December . Many employers close applications as soon as their places are filled.

Graduate jobs tend to be immediate start positions which can be available all year round. You are more likely to apply for these towards the end of your studies.

Vacancy sites

Use our resources to get started:

  • MyCareer - search for graduate schemes and graduate jobs in the North East, UK and overseas. Register/log in to access vacancies and sign up for personalised email alerts
  • Graduate Jobs – lists graduate vacancy sites

Vacancy sites for engineering

STEM graduates is a recruitment website specialising in science, technology, engineering and maths.

The following are also useful sites:

The Royal Aeronautical Society has a jobs board - try searching using 'graduate' as a keyword.

Space Crew is a job site for the space industry and has vacancies in engineering.

Defence Engineering and Science Group (DESG) offer a graduate scheme.

Motorsport Jobs has vacancies in Formula 1 and motorsport engineering.

You can also look at emedcareers and NHS Jobs to find engineering opportunities in the healthcare sector.

Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) are three-way partnerships. They involve a business, a graduate and an academic institution. Graduates work on research projects while gaining industrial experience with an employer. Projects are competitively paid, with funding for personal development. They typically last 1-3 years. View current opportunities.

Worldwide vacancy sites

There are opportunities to work overseas as an engineer. For example, the Australian Government offers a skilled-recognised graduate visa. This enables engineering graduates to gain up to 18 months of skilled work experience.

Also see International jobs for details of overseas vacancy sites.

Access GoinGlobal for job adverts in over 120 global locations, updated daily. Search for opportunities in the local language, as well as in English. You can also use their country guides to find:

  • additional vacancy websites
  • CV, application and interview advice
  • Advice on living and working in different countries and cities around the world.

 

Non-advertised work experience and graduate jobs

Not all internships, placements and graduate jobs are advertised. In fact, many people create opportunities through:

A speculative approach is common for finding work experience and graduate jobs. This is where you approach a company directly to ask if they have any opportunities available.

How to access hidden opportunities

Start by identifying organisations you are interested in. Our guide to finding organisations below can help. Then use the following steps to approach them speculatively about possible opportunities:

  1. Identify a contact name to address your cover letter to. Call or email to find out who handles recruitment within the organisation. Or, find a key contact in the department you want to work in.
  2. Send them a tailored CV and cover letter. Express your enthusiasm for the sector. Show that you have researched the company.
  3. Follow up your speculative application with a phone call, or email, around a week later. This shows you are serious and motivated.
  4. If your application was unsuccessful, ask for feedback or advice, and keep trying!
When to contact organisations

You can use this approach at any point in the year. We recommend that you:

  • start your research as early as possible to gather relevant contacts

contact organisations around three months before you want the opportunity to begin

How to find organisations

Use the resources below to find organisations in the North East, UK and worldwide.

UK organisations

Professional body websites sometimes include member directories, which are helpful for finding employers.

North East organisations

North East Process Industry Cluster (NEPIC) - has a member directory

Worldwide organisations

Search GoinGlobal’s employer directory for company information in 196 countries. Their country guides list professional bodies around the world.

Specialist recruitment agencies

Recruitment agencies can be useful for finding graduate jobs in engineering. These tend to be for immediate start positions. It's worth registering with one or two agencies towards the end of your course.

Specialist agencies include:

In the North East
UK and worldwide
  • Matchtech is a technical recruitment consultancy.
  • Faststream Recruitment is a specialist agency which includes marine jobs.
  • TRS has advanced manufacturing and engineering vacancies.

See Recruitment Agencies to find more agencies.

Finding overseas recruitment agencies

GoinGlobal’s country guides include details of recruitment agencies in specific countries. They are listed under the following headings:

  • Staffing agencies and temporary help firms
  • Executive recruiters and search firms

Recruitment agencies may not operate in the same way in different countries. In the UK agencies are free for job seekers, but this may not be the case elsewhere. Explore the terms and conditions of an agency before signing up to use them.

Other ways to gain relevant experience

We've added some suggestions to help you develop your skills and gain relevant experience.

  • complete a free virtual internship. For example, with Forage, you can filter by career interest to find virtual internships in engineering.
  • sign up for free online courses to develop new skills in engineering. Browse courses on Future Learn.
  • attend events and network to make contacts and connections.
  • enter an engineering related competition - prizes can often include internships. For example the annual Formula Student competition.
  • Engineers without Borders run a month long virtual design challenge.
  • look into Remap and Designability (BIME) for opportunities to design and create technology for people with disabilities

complete engineering related volunteering. For example, The Institution of Engineering and Technology offer volunteer opportunities. See Volunteering for more opportunities

Scholarships and awards

The IMechE offers a range of scholarships and awards for undergraduate and postgraduate study, overseas work placements and professional development.

The Royal Academy of Engineering offers Engineering Leaders Scholarships to undergraduate engineering students.

The UKNEST Scholarship offers £3,000 undergraduate scholarships for first, second and third year naval engineering, science and technology students.

You can also look at:

Work for yourself

Working as self-employed or freelance is common in the engineering sector.

Our START UP team can help you explore working for yourself at any stage. Whether you want to explore an idea or have already launched a business or freelance career, you can access the following help:

  • support with idea generation
  • provide tailored advice
  • help you develop your skills
  • introduce you to like-minded peers
  • refer you to further support from mentors
  • award grant funding up to £3,000

Related sectors

You might also be interested in the following occupations:

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