Re-engineering the future: how T Levels are building tomorrow’s engineering workforce
Engineering is one of the most dynamic and fast-evolving sectors in the UK – driven by constant innovation, new technologies and the need to solve global challenges. From aerospace to maritime, automotive to energy, engineers today are designing smarter systems, developing cleaner technologies, and shaping the industries that will define our future.
The theme of this National Engineering Day is The Engineers of 2076, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Royal Academy of Engineering, not by looking back, but by looking fifty years ahead, as engineers tackle some of the biggest challenges facing our planet.
To keep pace with this evolution, businesses need access to a new generation of technically skilled, adaptable thinkers. That’s where T Levels come in.
An evolving industry needs young, skilled talent
T Levels are technical qualifications for 16–19-year-olds, designed with engineering and manufacturing employers to address skills gaps and help businesses bring young talent on board.
Each T Level course includes a 45-day industry placement with an employer, which gives businesses a chance to bring in motivated young people, introduce them to the business, and develop their skills on real projects.
Bringing fresh perspectives, digital know-how, and a willingness to learn and adapt, T Level students are already making a real difference to engineering and manufacturing firms across the UK.
“With T Levels, their placements last for 45 days, which offers a lot of scope,” explains Kate Houlden, Managing Director at Like Technologies, an engineering firm in Lancashire with 24 employees, specialising in industrial electronics and software in the nuclear industry.
“They’re further on in their education [than work experience students] and have already made the decision to pursue a career in engineering. T Level students are also a lot more capable of working independently than those on school placements.”
Students were set to work on real-world tasks – including soldering, repair and refurbishment, and soak testing.
“At the end of the placement, their confidence levels had skyrocketed,” says Kate. “It was great to see how they’d applied what they’d learnt in college to a real workplace environment.”
Recruiting the next generation of engineers
Many businesses hosting T Level students are finding they’re not just helping to plug immediate skills gaps – they’re also shaping their long-term recruitment strategies.
“One of our second-year students really stood out,” says Kate from Like Technologies. “She was outstanding and we offered her a full-time position once she completed her T Level course.”
Since 2024, Like Technologies have hosted seven T Level students on industry placements, subsequently employing two in full-time jobs.
This year, Sellafield has also piloted T Level industry placements for three students. All three have been offered the chance to come back as apprentices, and each one has accepted the opportunity.
Marc Skilllen, Education and Skills Manager for Sellafield, says: “With T Levels, we can see the importance of that starting point as the qualifications lead to one of our internal job roles through one of our apprenticeship pathways.”
He adds: “The 45-day industry placement is like a long interview process, so we can offer them an apprenticeship without any further application or the sort of assessment centre activity that apprenticeship programmes normally start with.”
T Level industry placements have quickly established themselves as an integral part of Sellafield’s recruitment strategy:
“We’re really scaling this in the second year by hosting 9-week industry placements for 16 T Level students, as it’s efficient for us. We know how many engineering and maintenance vocational apprentices we need, and we know how many degree apprentices we need.”
Build your future workforce
By offering a T Level industry placement, engineering and manufacturing businesses can play an active role in shaping the next generation of talent – while strengthening their own teams in the process.
T Levels: Tomorrow’s Talent, Today.
Find out how to host an industry placement at: employers.tlevels.gov.uk
