Royal Institution engineering masterclass speaker

Do you want to ignite a passion for engineering in top-tier secondary school students? Would you like to work with an expert team to strengthen your presentation skills? If your answer is yes, then the Royal Institution wants you to apply to be one of their engineering masterclass volunteer speakers.

The Royal Institution’s engineering masterclasses are run throughout the UK for select groups of students who are talented in STEM subjects and in year nine at secondary school. The students attend six Saturday morning masterclasses, and listen to a different speaker each week.

The masterclasses aim to spark a passion for engineering in students and encourage them to continue to study non-combined STEM subjects at school.

About you

You will:

• Want to work with top-tier secondary school students and pass on your passion for engineering
• Be a committed engineer from academia and industry
• Be willing to be trained and supported by an expert team who want to help you expand your presentation skills and general levels of confidence
• Have ideas for projects that The Royal Institution team could help you turn into a knock-out masterclass
• Have an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check (this used to be called a CRB check)

What you will do

• Deliver masterclasses to talented school children to develop their interest in STEM subjects

How you will benefit

You will:

• Have an opportunity to promote engineering and engage with the most gifted and talented STEM students in the country
• Gain confidence and a better understanding of how to communicate your topic to the general public and young people
• Have an opportunity to gain CPD experience beyond your own organisation
• Gain networking opportunities with a prestigious organisation

How much time it will take

When you start, you’ll need to spend time developing your masterclass. You would be expected to deliver it around two to three times per year, for 2.5 hours on Saturday mornings. In addition, there may be opportunities to get involved with special events run at the Royal Institution’s headquarters in London throughout the year.

How it works

The Royal Institution expects students to be highly engaged during each masterclass and this means that unfortunately, not all volunteers who express an interest in this role will be automatically accepted to take part.

If you are selected to be a speaker, The Royal Institution’s masterclass team will work closely with you as you develop your workshop. The team would help you develop your project ideas and ensure the level of theory is pitched correctly to ensure a high level of engagement from the 30 children attending each masterclass. They can also arrange visits to other masterclasses and school STEM clubs, as and when you need that type of training.

You could volunteer as a masterclass helper as an initial first step to becoming a speaker. Helpers get involved to support the speaker during the practical element of the session.