Jobs can be inspiring in many ways. From the sheer ‘wow’ of being an astronaut, to the dedication involved in committing to becoming an apprentice, here we take a look at some of the fantastic voyages you can embark upon with a science, engineering, technology and maths background.
It's a material world
Rebecca Lees has just come off a graduate trainee programme at Jaguar Land Rover. A materials engineer, already, she’s been central to developing the Range Rover Evoque, which aims to be the cleanest, greenest Range Rover ever - a direction where the company and engineering design is going.
A model apprentice
Despite just having finished his 4 year apprenticeship at Jaguar Land Rover, Allan Howling has been heavily involved with modelling the CX-75, the company’s electric concept supercar. During the model vehicles ‘reveal’ at the Paris Motor Show, his work wowed the world’s press.
Behind the music
Behind every great gig or festival like Glastonbury, there are people working to make sure the audience hear the band in the best possible way. These people are called live sound engineers, like Steve Bunting. He makes best use of a core technical knowledge, good contacts and a love of music to get-ahead in the job.
Making film magic
If you’ve ever wondered how blockbusters get to look so good, it’s down to the work of people like Eugenie von Tunzelmann who make ground-breaking visual effects. Her background in engineering and computer science has paved her way to working for Double Negative, one of the world’s leading visual effects companies.
On a mission
Hanna Sykulska-Lawrence can truly claim to be ‘reaching for the stars.’ As well as winning the prestigious IET Young Woman Engineer of Year, she has been on a team that helped send a NASA mission to Mars. She is currently at Imperial College London. Not bad for a 27-year-old at the start of her career, I’d say.
Power up
You may take the electricity that feeds your house for granted…but you probably shouldn’t. Keeping energy lines open is a challenging job and it’s also a very rewarding one. We spoke to Chris Buggins an apprentice from Central Networks to get the lowdown.
Dig Deep
Since signing on with Shell, Poonum Parmar has already travelled around the world. And, as a Reservoir Engineer, her career is only just beginning. Here, we find how Shell’s graduate programme took her where she wanted to go.
The tools of the film trade
Joe Lamont-Fisher is at the centre of research and development for Double Negative, one of the world’s leading visual effects companies. He is responsible for making sure that the IT tools are in place to make films like Inception look as good as possible.
Turning a spotlight on lighting engineers
When entertainment events promoters are putting on a show – like a gig or an awards ceremony - they need a lighting engineer, like Tim Perrett, to make sure that everything looks as good as possible. This goes all the way from designing and setting up the best lights for a venue to controlling them on the night to ensure a well-lit show.
When the chips are down

Intel is firmly focused on making the technology today that will shape our tomorrow. To find out what happens behind the doors of one of the world’s most recognisable technology brands, we spoke to Anthony Moglione, a business and systems analyst at Intel to see what makes him, and the company, tick.
Making it better
Technology has transformed healthcare beyond recognition, making quicker and more accurate diagnoses and treatment possible. We spoke to Sarah Cowan from Siemens to find out how we can now enjoy healthier and longer lives, and how you could get involved.
The right formula
With near endless budgets and the constant pursuit of faster lap times, is the adrenalin fuelled world of Formula 1 the ultimate dream job for automotive engineers? We spoke to Katriona Jones, a composite design engineer for Williams to get the lowdown.
The ultimate trip
Think of the most exotic trip you can…India? Thailand? Maybe South America? What about outer space? Well, Pamela Melroy has been there, and now she’s back to tell us all about it. Following a degree in physics and astronomy and then a masters in Earth & Planetary Sciences, she went for the dream job to end all dream jobs… to be an astronaut.
It all adds up to fantastic films
As an effects supervisor at Double Negative, Nicola Hoyle has been central to making some of the most fantastic moments in film. Remember the Hall of Prophecies scene from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix? The destruction part of that was down to Nicola and her peers.
The human machine
As people we’re all subject to wear and tear. But who do you turn to when things go wrong? Welcome to the world of medical engineering. Medical engineering forms a bridge between ‘traditional’ engineering and medicine by solving patients’ physical problems using engineering principles.
He knows what you're thinking
When Michael Chappell says he ‘knows what you’re thinking’ he’s being entirely literal. Michael looks at the ‘engineering’ in the brain to try and work out what makes us tick and to work out what we can do if something goes wrong.
It's alive!
Robots have been part of science fiction for decades and have been a part of the real, industrial world for years, building everything from cars to phones. But, what’s on the horizon looks even more exciting and presents a fantasic opportunity for some truly fantastic careers.
From apprentice to master
For many, an apprenticeship is the beginning of a long journey taking them from a childhood passion to the heights of their chosen profession. Pete Cowman has begun that journey. Starting as a production operative, he went on into a structured apprentice training programme with Worcester Bosch, combining the best of practical knowledge with underlying theory.
Date Published: September 26, 2011






























