How to Get Into Engineering

The importance of accreditation

Unlike tech or media, engineering in the UK is a formal profession. The ultimate goal for most engineers is to become a Chartered Engineer (CEng), a protected title awarded through the Engineering Council. It proves your competence to employers and clients, is often expected for senior and lead roles, and is usually reflected in your salary.

To become Chartered, you need the right educational foundation. Before you apply for a university course, you must check if it is accredited.

Accreditation means that a professional body (like the Institution of Mechanical Engineers or the Institution of Civil Engineers) has reviewed the degree and confirmed it meets the academic requirements for CEng status.

• If you do a 4-year integrated Master's (MEng), you usually meet all academic requirements in one go.
• If you do a 3-year Bachelor's (BEng), you will usually need to complete further learning (like a 1-year MSc) later in your career to qualify for CEng.

If your degree is not accredited, the path to Chartership is much longer and more complicated.

Key engineering sectors

Engineering is a massive field. The discipline you study at university usually dictates the sector you enter.

Civil and Structural

Designing and building infrastructure: roads, bridges, railways, and skyscrapers. Major employers include Arup, Balfour Beatty, Network Rail, and Mott MacDonald.

Mechanical

Designing anything with moving parts, from wind turbines and manufacturing plants to robotics. It is the broadest discipline, allowing you to work in almost any sector. Major employers include Rolls-Royce, BAE Systems, and Dyson.

Aerospace and Automotive

Highly specialised mechanical and electronic engineering focused on vehicles, aircraft, and defence. Major employers include Airbus, Jaguar Land Rover, and Formula 1 teams.

Electrical and Electronic

Designing power grids, microchips, telecommunications networks, and control systems. Major employers include National Grid, Siemens, and Thales.

Chemical

Designing processes to produce chemicals, fuels, pharmaceuticals, and food on an industrial scale. Major employers include BP, GSK, and Unilever.

Graduate schemes vs direct entry

Engineering Graduate Schemes

Most large engineering firms run structured graduate schemes lasting two to three years. Starting salaries are typically £28,000 to £35,000; see our complete guide to graduate schemes for how the application cycle works. You join a cohort, receive formal training, and rotate through different departments (e.g., design, testing, project management, and site work). Crucially, these schemes are specifically designed to help you gather the evidence you need to apply for Chartership.

Direct Entry Roles

Smaller engineering consultancies and specialist manufacturers often hire graduates directly into specific roles (e.g., "Junior CAD Technician" or "Site Engineer"). You will get more hands-on responsibility faster, but you will have to take more initiative in managing your own path to Chartership, as there is no formal rotation programme.

The role of industrial placements

Engineering is an applied science. Employers value practical experience as much as academic grades.

Many engineering degrees are offered as "sandwich courses," meaning you spend your third year working full-time in the industry on an industrial placement.

Taking a placement year is one of the smartest career moves you can make. It gives you up to a year of commercial experience, allows you to apply theoretical physics and maths to real-world problems, and often results in a "return offer"—meaning the company offers you a place on their graduate scheme before you even return to university for your final year.

If you cannot do a full placement year, you must aim for a summer internship in your penultimate year. See our guide on placements, internships and spring weeks for application timelines.

Engineering degree apprenticeships

If you are a school leaver with strong A-levels (particularly in Maths and Physics), you do not have to go to university full-time.

Engineering companies were early adopters of the degree apprenticeship model. You can join a company like BAE Systems, Airbus, or Network Rail straight out of school. You will usually work in their facilities and study for a BEng at a partner university, either one day a week or in blocks of a few weeks at a time.

The employer pays your tuition fees, and you earn a salary (often starting around £20,000 to £27,000). By the time you finish the programme, which usually takes four to six years, you will have a degree, no tuition debt, and years of practical experience. For how degree apprenticeships work in general, see our degree apprenticeships deep dive and degree apprenticeship vs university.

The path to Chartership (CEng)

Getting a job is just the first step. To become a Chartered Engineer (CEng), you must prove your competence across five areas set out in the Engineering Council's standard, UK-SPEC:

1. Knowledge and understanding
2. Design, development and solving engineering problems
3. Responsibility, management and leadership
4. Communication and interpersonal skills
5. Professional commitment

You gather evidence for these competencies during the first years of your career, typically four to six, usually through your professional institution (such as the IMechE, ICE, or IET). Once you have enough evidence, you submit a written application and sit a professional review interview with experienced engineers. If you pass, you earn the CEng title.

CEng is not the only title. The Engineering Council also awards Incorporated Engineer (IEng) and Engineering Technician (EngTech), which recognise different levels of responsibility and are common goals for engineers who came in through apprenticeships.

FAQ

• Do I need A-level Physics?↓

  Do I need A-level Physics?

  For Mechanical, Civil, Aerospace, and Electrical engineering, A-level Maths and Physics are almost always mandatory requirements for university courses and degree apprenticeships. Chemical engineering usually requires Maths and Chemistry.

• Can I get into engineering without a degree?↓

  Can I get into engineering without a degree?

  Yes, via apprenticeships. You can start at Level 3 (equivalent to A-levels) or Level 4 (such as an HNC) as a technician, and work towards EngTech registration. Many technicians later receive company sponsorship to study for a degree part-time and go on to become Incorporated or Chartered Engineers.

• Is the industry male-dominated?↓

  Is the industry male-dominated?

  Historically, yes, and women are still under-represented. Organisations like the Women's Engineering Society (WES) and major employers are actively trying to recruit more women into the field through targeted scholarships, mentoring programmes, and contextual recruitment.

Next steps

If you are preparing to apply for engineering roles, make sure your CV emphasises your practical projects, software skills (like AutoCAD, SolidWorks, or MATLAB), and any hands-on experience. Many engineering employers use psychometric tests and assessment centres, so prepare for those too.

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