Engineering students inspire a future generation through STEM partnership project

GCU students have been showcasing their projects to primary school pupils in the hopes to introduce them to their fields of study.

Mechanical Electronic Systems and Computer Aided Mechanical Engineering students have been visiting pupils in Brediland Primary and Bushes Primary to present their projects and to discuss the skills they have learned in university.

One project has involved producing a wind turbine; a sustainable project made through a STEM partnership grant awarded by The Royal Society.

Last year, MEng students designed and manufactured a micro wind turbine which is kept at the primary school for pupils to charge their electronic devices. This year, one student enhanced the wind turbine blades by replacing the 3D printed blades with blades made with composite material. This has allowed pupils to be introduced to topics such as additive manufacturing and composite materials apart from renewable energy.

Pupils have also visited workshops at GCU to see first-hand how the student projects are being built. Pupils had the opportunity to witness the different stages of how to design and manufacture products, as well as the software that students are using to do this. This the first time that many of these pupils have ever visited a university, allowing them to experience what it is like to be a student in higher education.

Fourth Year Computer Aided Mechanical Engineering student Matthew Duguid worked on the turbine project and found the whole experience to be beneficial. He said: “I got involved with the primary school project because it's something different than the usual Honours Project and getting to interact with people outside the university is something I hadn't done before.

I've found it beneficial because it's given me some experience in teaching and sharing my ideas with other people.”

He added: “It's important for more students to partake in STEM projects because I think it's important to get younger kids into engineering as much as possible.

The demand for engineers is always growing so it's important to introduce kids to the subject early.”

To find out more about STEM grants with The Royal Society, click here

By Rachael McAlonan

Got a SCEBE or GSBS story? Email me at Rachael.McAlonan@gcu.ac.uk or connect with me on social media here