Edinburgh Science has announced details of its annual Careers Hive, a week-long free event held at the National Museum of Scotland (NMS) and run by Edinburgh Science Learning, the education arm of Edinburgh Science Foundation and one of the UK’s leaders in science education.
Initially developed in 2016, Careers Hive aims to inspire S1-S3 pupils to pursue a STEM-based (science, technology, engineering and maths) career through hands-on activities, discussions with STEM professionals and workshops to equip them with skills and confidence to progress in their chosen field. Careers Hive will address the rising tide of young people not choosing STEM subjects by encouraging and showcasing where this subject engagement will lead.
Booked groups are guided around three main areas of activity by a science communicator which include a Skills Gateway workshop and Life After Leaving School discussion panel. Pupils will hear from a variety of young STEM professionals and leaders in their respective fields such as Gurrashpal Khakh, Quality Assurance Tester who works for Rocksteady Studios playing computer games; Anna O’Dowd, laser engineer at Vector Photonics and winner of TechWomen 2022; Mhairi McCann, founder of Youth STEM 2030 which aims to harness the talents of youth to tackle urgent environmental issues and Dr. Liita Cairney, founder of Kalitasha which works to end period poverty around the world.
Taking over the Grand Gallery at NMS the Experience STEM interactive exhibition features four themed zones: Energy & Environment, Heal & Feed, Design & Play, and Build & Connect. In these zones, students and Open Day visitors can engage with professionals and try out activities related to real jobs.
Some of the highlights include Extreme Environments which sees participants strapped into an inversion table and undergo challenges while upside down; emulating jobs that require workers to perform in very different and extreme environments; perform a Keyhole Surgery on a mannequin using real medical equipment; programme Edinburgh’s Marty the Robot in Creative Coding or, in AR Sandbox, use a sandbox, projector and depth sensor to colour in the sandy terrain according to learn about planning large scale environmental construction plans.
Friday afternoon will also see the return of Teacher Afternoon session that will build on the Careers Hive experience and provide activity ideas and discussions to take back to the classroom.
Director and CEO at Edinburgh Science Simon Gage said “Whether it’s developing future technologies, responding to global health crises, or tackling the climate emergency, STEM skills have never been so highly in demand – but the perception still exists that STEM subjects are not for everybody. We aim to challenge these perceptions with Careers Hive, as we welcome over 2500 of Scotland’s young people to the National Museum of Scotland to share the incredible opportunities available to them if they continue to study science, technology and maths at school. …”
Between 7th and 11th of November at the National Museum of Scotland, Careers Hive can be accessed by pre-booked school groups only with an Open Day on Saturday, 12th November.
Schools interested in taking part in Careers Hive are welcome to contact the team on
Irene Brown
Radio Summerhall Arts 