28 March, 2024

New Diploma in Engineering inspired thinking

05 April, 2009

Festo GB hosted the launch of a new Diploma in Engineering at its Brackmill headquarters recently. The launch ceremony was attended by 29 students from four schools in the area who expressed interest in the new qualification, together with parents and representatives of local educational establishments.

The new Diploma – which is open to all Year 9 A to C grade GCSE students – is being introduced by the Local Education Authority. Designed and developed by employers, the qualification is intended to bring a new level of excitement to personal attainment, by blending together the best of academic and applied learning. The Diploma will be taught by local partnerships of schools, colleges and businesses, and will help individuals to gain vital engineering knowledge and skills, which they can use directly in employment or as a stepping stone to higher education, such as studying engineering at degree level. 

Valuable attainment

The director of Northampton 14-19 Collaboration, Nick Pyke, said: “This new diploma is an extremely valuable attainment for students – it is worth up to seven GCSEs. Initially, we are only offering it to a small number of students, because we want to monitor progress closely to ensure that we get things right. But judging by the interest that is being shown by students in the area, we are likely to consider rolling it out to a larger group over time.

Worth pursuing

Philip Wallington from Kingsthorpe College and Austyn Beeching-Smith from Northampton College both stated that they were very pleased at the introduction of such a high level engineering course. Outlining the various modules that would be taught, Beeching-Smith went on to say that the diploma was not an “easy” option for students, but involved considerable engineering-related maths and science study. Gary Wyles, managing director of Festo GB, commented: “We were delighted to host this event. By the end of the evening, I’m fairly certain that everyone present was convinced that a career in engineering is well worth pursuing.”


 

 

 





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