A new global study by the Centre for Economics and Business Research has found that there is a strong association between engineering strength and economic development, with the UK ranking 14th on the index that ranks nations by their engineering strength.
Commissioned by the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAE), the report ranked 99 countries based on this, with Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands coming top of the list, scoring well because of high employment in engineering, good quality engineering infrastructure and high average engineering wages.
Interestingly, developing economies like Myanmar, Tunisia and Honduras came top globally where gender parity in the industry is concerned, with the highest proportion of female graduates at 65 per cent, 42 per cent and 41 per cent respectively. In the UK, 22 per cent of graduates are female, to put this into perspective.
The UK’s ranking of 14th is down in part to the relatively high salaries that engineers in the country enjoy. In addition, the quality of the country’s educational establishments has helped push the ranking higher, with nine of its university engineering departments making it into the Times Higher Education University Rankings top 100 list, beaten only by the US in this field.
Deputy CEO and director of strategy at the RAE Dr Hayaatun Sillem said: “This report is a further step towards understanding the world’s engineering capabilities and future demands for engineering, building on the collaborative work we do with professional engineering institutions, academic institutions and engineering businesses in the developing world to build capacity.”
Earlier this month (September), the RAE held its Engineering a Better World conference over two days, exploring how the industry can drive progress where the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals are concerned, enacting social and economic change. You can find out more about what conclusions were drawn on the RAE website now.
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