ENTRY is now open for the 2019 BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition (BTYSTE).
The exhibition promotes STEM skills in schools and BTYSTE ambassador, TV star and mentalist, David Meade is calling on Northern Ireland secondary school students to take part and start developing their ideas for an award-winning project.
He said: “BTYSTE is the perfect place for students to push the boundaries and use their imagination and it can also be the starting point of a bright future for many young people seeking careers in STEM. I would strongly encourage young people from across Northern Ireland to get thinking about possible projects now and I’m looking forward to seeing what they come up with.”
To mark the announcement of the dates for the January exhibition, BT commissioned a survey of 300 workers in Belfast to identify current sentiment and attitudes towards sectors of employment.
The research revealed that 61% of STEM employees in Belfast were either satisfied or highly satisfied in their job. Further positive results for the STEM sector showed that nearly 70% of respondents said they were inspired by their work and a quarter expected a salary increase of 10-20% in the coming few years. However, the research also revealed that only 2% of those working in STEM roles had completed an apprenticeship or internship to get into their current role in comparison to other industries such as Finance where 31% had entered the workplace in this way. With demand for STEM employees on the increase, the findings indicate more entry level opportunities are needed to increase the pipeline of people training to work in the STEM industry.
Garret Kavanagh, Acting Managing Director of Networks for BT in Northern Ireland, said:
“The theme for BTYSTE 2019 is ‘It Starts Here’. We’re promoting our home grown talent and want this to be the starting point of a new journey and a fulfilling career in STEM.
“It really is a place where they can explore new concepts, develop their interest in STEM and demonstrate creativity. We are keen to see more students from Northern Ireland enter this year so they can showcase their talent.”
The BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition 2019 will take place from January 9-12 and the deadline to apply is September 25, 2018.