Residential summer school to inspire next generation of scientists and engineers

Students across the UK will get the chance to be part of a residential summer course launched by the University of Southampton that aims to inspire the next generation of electronic engineers and computer scientists.

The lucky participants will have the opportunity to gain an insight into life at one of the UK’s top universities as well as find out about the careers they could aspire to once they graduate.

The week-long course is being run by Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) at the University in July 2015 and builds on summer schools previously held there.

Electrical and Electronic Engineering Senior Admissions Tutor Dr Geoff Merrett said: “Last summer we hosted a summer school in electronics and it was a fantastic success.

“This year we want to expand on this and offer something even better. Our week-long residential will cover all areas of Electronics and Computer Science, from computer science and software engineering, electrical and electronic engineering, to information technology in organisations, and web science. We hope that by taking part in the summer school we will engage the students in the subjects, inspire them to apply for a university place and open their eyes to the exciting breadth of careers that a degree in ECS can lead to,â€? he added.

A-Level students who sign up to the course will take part in activities in the undergraduate laboratories, meet current and former pupils, network with potential employers, visit a commercial or research facility in the UK, and hear about the latest teaching and research from the University’s team of globally-renowned lecturers.

They will also get the chance to live in halls of residence for a week and enjoy a range of social activities.

The summer school will build on ECS’s continuing commitment to encourage more women to go into science and engineering subjects at university and as a career.

Co-organiser Dr Reena Pau, a PhD alumna from the University of Southampton, said: “We hope that by giving young women the opportunity to experience what life is like studying science at university we will dispel many of the myths and misconceptions they may have.â€?

Students from last year’s electronics summer school hosted by ECS say they really enjoyed the experience.

Megan, from Wiltshire, said: “It was really worthwhile and helped me know that I wanted to do electronics at university.â€? Ricki, from Cambridgeshire, added: “A great taster of what electronics is like, and made me certain on choosing electronic engineering at university.â€?

The ECS summer school will run from 27 to 31 July, 2015 and is open to the top students in Year 12 studying A-Levels in Maths and one of Physics, Further Maths, Computing or Electronics. To find out more about what is on offer and how to apply visit www.summerschool.ecs.soton.ac.uk.