Aberdeen students inspired by charity to engage in Scotland’s rich heritage of design and manufacturing – Aberdeen Business News

TechFest, an Aberdeen-based charity, has launched the programme ‘STEM into Innovation’ to enhance Scottish students’ awareness of innovation processes used within the design and manufacturing sectors.

STEM into Innovation targets secondary school students, offering both in-school tuition and live masterclasses held in Scottish cities. The initiative aims to equip young people with STEM and entrepreneurship skills and knowledge for further academic or STEM careers.

It kicked off with “Pioneers of Progress” in February, an exciting initiative exploring the evolution of instant communications and an introduction to design.

This free programme, which is still available to access via TechFest’s website, is delivered in classrooms through video content accompanied by follow-up challenges that aim to enhance all participating students’ mathematics, writing, design, marketing and teamwork skills.

It is designed for teachers across all subjects, providing a variety of resources for classroom instruction from TechFest, such as student activity booklets and interviews with industry professionals.

Sarah Chew, Managing Director of TechFest, said: “STEM into Innovation taps into Scotland’s rich design and manufacturing heritage, equipping students with the skills and mindset to become Scotland’s next STEM leaders. 

“It is a CREST-accredited programme that empowers students to unlock their full STEM potential, strengthens their CVs and UCAS applications while equipping them with the skills and mindset needed to bridge the industry skills gap.

“STEM into Innovation is committed to creating greater diversity and equality through encouraging more young people to consider a career in the engineering or science industries.”

TechFest delivered a range of masterclasses for students as part of STEM into Innovation, where students could roll up their sleeves and dive into hands-on product design.

The masterclasses were held in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee, and provided an opportunity for young people to gain insights on entrepreneurship and product development from industry professionals.

A masterclass conducted by Horizon Educational, organisers of the Hydrogen Grand Prix (H2GP), concluded the 2024 programme on the 23^rd of November with a focus on engineering design and innovation.

Tobias Lundsgaard, Product Development Manager at Horizon Educational said: “Being able to bridge the gap between the products we develop in our R&D centre and the students we serve has been an invaluable aspect of TechFest’s STEM into Innovation programme.

“Getting to know these students – and being able to give them a glimpse into my own process of product development has reminded me of why I chose to pursue a career at Horizon Educational: to help build future leaders with a passion for STEM and Conscious design.”

Other masterclasses were held in Aberdeen at Robert Gordon University (RGU) by Dr John NA Brown from RGU and TL Tech.

Caroline Lawrenson, Managing Director of TL Tech, said: “It can be hard for young people to know what they want to do when they leave school, but there is often a common thread where they talk about how they want to make a difference. Innovation at its heart is about solving problems and making a positive impact. The Theory of Change framework is a great way to investigate a problem and define how you will make the best use of your resources.

“During the workshop it was wonderful to see the young people apply this knowledge about the Theory of Change and their own experiences of STEM education to Techfest as an organisation to identify areas of growth and a vision for the future.”

A student who attended the TL Tech masterclass said: “I really liked it.  We as a team did very well and got many ideas”

STEM into Innovation was designed to equip students with in-demand entrepreneurial skills for employers and higher education institutions, enhancing their academic and career prospects in STEM fields.

This CREST-accredited programme: Pioneers of Progress runs throughout the academic year, alongside all other STEM into Innovation events and will continue to be available in the next school year, offering students ongoing opportunities to engage with STEM.

Following the success STEM into Innovation, next academic year, TechFest will host a cross-curricular design project for secondary school pupils to build on their previous programme experiences.