Record number of students to attend electronics summer school in Southampton

The fourth annual, and biggest ever, UKESF (UK Electronics Skills Foundation), summer school is being hosted by the University of Southampton this week (7 to 11 July).

The UKESF Summer Schools provide prospective electrical and electronic engineering (EEE) students first-hand electronics experience. Students have been recruited as part of the EDT Headstart programme, which runs science and engineering university taster courses at universities across the UK.

The five-day course will consist of practical lab work and lectures from academics from UKESF university partners (Cardiff, Edinburgh, Imperial, Manchester, Nottingham, and York) as well as academics from the University of Southampton. There will also be field trips to course sponsors Thales and the Science and Technology Facilities Council; offering students the opportunity to gain practical insights into the lives of working electronic engineers across a range of disciplines including aerospace, defence, security, transport, particle physics and space technology.

The course will be supported by UKESF scholarship students currently studying at the University of Southampton, and will feature presentations from previous UKESF scholarship students who will talk about their experience of working in the industry.

“These courses are a fantastic way for school students to learn about electronics and to encourage them into degrees valued by an industry that has a range of rewarding careers to offer,” said Professor Bashir Al-Hashimi, Associate Dean for Research at the University of Southampton’s Faculty of Physical Sciences and Engineering. “Since UKESF started, over 30 of our students have been part of the scholarship scheme, undertaking valuable work experience that has informed their career decisions,” he adds.

The event is being sponsored by a number of world-leading companies that create or rely on electronic systems including, ARM, Broadcom Foundation, CSR, Dialog Semiconductor, Imagination Technologies, Jaguar Land Rover, and Thales.