Holidays

Do you like your holidays? Imagine the sunny destination you’ve got lined up for next summer… well, you wouldn’t get far without an aeroplane to take you there. It’s thanks to aeronautical engineers that you get to fly out to your fave places. Find out more about a career in aeronautical engineering from the Royal Aeronautical Society website.

Protecting wildlife

Not everyone wants to get close to a crocodile like Steve Irwin on his crazy TV show, but we need to know more about wildlife and wilderness to help protect remaining wild habitats and save endangered species. Studying animals in their natural habitat is one of the jobs open to a brave biologist! Find out more about a career in biology from the Institute of Biology.

Make-up and fashion

Mascara, nail polish, moisturiser cream, gym clothes… ever seen those adverts on TV with our favourite stars promoting all these products because “they’re worth it”?
Well they couldn’t be if it wasn’t for chemical engineers producing the latest smudge-free mascara, the non-ladder tights or the latest anti-blemish creams. Find out more about a career in chemical engineering from the Institution of Chemical Engineers.

Solving crime

Think of your favourite TV or film detective. Well, they would find it pretty hard to solve the crimes without the aid of forensic scientists analysing lots of clues – and that’s just where the expertise of a chemist is essential. Find out more about a career in chemistry from the Royal Society of Chemistry.

Safe and warm

What would your life be like without a roof over your head? Who designs modern hospitals or manages huge construction projects? We have to thank civil engineers for giving us buildings in which to live safely and comfortably. Find out more about a career in civil and environmental engineering from the Institution of Civil Engineers or the Construction Industry Training Board.

Helping the developing world

We all see the difficulties that communities in the Developing World are faced with on programmes such as Comic Relief, Children in Need and often the news. Things we take for granted, such as getting clean water, can be a daily struggle for these people. This is where geologists help to solve environmental problems like this one and aim to use the planet’s resources effectively. Find out more about a career in geology from the Royal Geological Society.

Gadgets, games and DVDs

Look around you and count the number of items you see which use electricity to operate. From the microwave to your mobile phone, your hairdryer to your DVD player, electronic and electrical engineers invent and design these gizmos that we all enjoy. And another bonus is that they are always looking to upgrade the gadgets that already exist. Maybe in a few years time your mobile phone will be the size of a button! Find out more about a career in electronics and electrical engineering from the Institution of Electrical Engineers.

Improve the quality of life and even save it

We’ve all seen programmes such as Casualty, Holby City and ER, and lots of us have fallen in love with one of the doctors at some point! But however brilliant they may be, doctors often need the expert help of mechanical engineers to treat their patients. Whether it is designing artificial limbs for landmine victims, incubators for premature babies, or hip replacements for elderly people, these engineers work with doctors to find the best solution for their patients. Find out more about a career in mechanical engineering from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

Watching the weather

Do you like to know whether it will be a sizzling summer or a snowy winter? Well, the weather presenters on TV use great technology to show you the weather that is forecast, but where do they get their information from? For a reliable weather forecast you need to ask a physicist. Find out more about a career in physics from the Institute of Physics or the Meteorological Office.

Making the right medicine

From a simple paracetamol to the latest anti-cancer treatments, lots of different scientists and engineers will have been involved in making medical treatments safe and effective. Think about it: biologists examine the reactions of cells or organs to a disease, physicists create the medical scanning equipment used to diagnose patients, chemists investigate the structure and properties of potential drug treatments, chemical engineers design processes to make pharmaceutical products, and mechanical engineers provide artificial implants for unhealthy hearts. That's just a few examples of the way science, engineering and technology work together in medicine.

As you explore other careers within science, engineering and technology, you'll find lots of them are about teamwork between people with different skills helping to solve the world's problems. So go on, get out there and make a difference!