There is an enormous amount of information available to inspire and inform learners about STEM careers. In STEM Getting started we focus on four key resource hubs; the Futuremorph website, National STEM Centre elibrary, Maths Careers website and sources of STEM labour market information.

Resources are introduced and you are asked to complete a short task to build familiarity with the content and potential of the materials and then to note how to use these sources in future. More general careers resources where good quality STEM information can also be found are in the Taking it further section. 

 Futuremorph

Futuremorph is The Science Council's careers website, designed to provide information for learners, their parents, teachers and careers professionals about career progression from studying science and maths. It is an extremely rich, interactive resource, linking to a wide variety of supplementary sources.

Watch this screencast: "Futuremorph: An Introduction" which gives an overview of the site. Move cursor over presentation to show start, pause, forward and reverse buttons. Download the presentation for your own use and to access hyperlinks.

 The National STEM Centre eLibrary

The National STEM Centre eLibrary is a unique hub for access to huge variety of STEM Careers materials including freely downloadable videos, lesson plans, case studies and posters. If you haven't already, you need to register to download all resources, but this is free and easy to do. We will revisit the elibrary throughout the STEM Careers module, but now the focus is effective use of the library and its most popular resources.

There are a range of help videos and explanations available to help you make the most of this resource. Click here to view a video on 'How does the eLibrary search work?'.

elibrary Activity

Click here to access instructions and a short task to help you make the most of STEM careers resources in the National STEM Centre elibrary.

 Maths careers website

Maths careers is a hugely useful site with sections specifically for those aged 11-14, 14-16. 16-19, undergraduates, graduates and adult learners. In addition to sections for teachers and careers advisers, it offers career profiles, videos and topical articles which illustrate how maths fits into the wider world, as well as illustrating possible career paths using the subject. Careers in maths are explored in the context of the environment, healthcare, business and money, entertainment, science and engineering and sport.

Mathscareers Activity

Use the mathscareers.org.uk site to locate and investigate the following features:

• Career profiles
• Career calculator
• Who employs mathematicians?

 STEM Labour Market Information (LMI)

Labour market information is a critical element in the understanding of those who advise learners about STEM learning and careers. Use this link to browse a few of the 14 different STEM sector summaries, taken either from the STEM Choices pack, or written by The Institute of Employment Research at Warwick University. Using the same link scroll down and read about STEM LMI available on the LMI Future Trends website, an extremely rich resource containing information on 25 sectors from a range of high quality sources, which is up-to-date, reliable and impartial.

  STEM LMI Activity

Complete either the Case Study Quiz on the STEM LMI link or use the Sector Information for Engineering and the Sciences from LMI Future Trends to answer these webquiz questions.

Note in your STEM Careers Personal Action Plan, which can be downloaded here, which of these resources you will use, who you will use it with and when this could happen, as well as any other thoughts or actions you want to take forward.

Taking it further...

1. For a list of general careers resources which cover all parts of the UK and also specialise in video content and are aimed at specific groups, go to General Sources and Careers Information. All of the links provided there have excellent careers information relevant to STEM careers, many also contain useful labour market information too.
2. For an enhanced list of STEM LMI resources, go to Guide to STEM LMI resources provided by the Institute of Employment Research at Warwick University.
3. Future Morph provides a list of careers websites checklist, which includes Sector Skills Councils, and organisations linked to different STEM subject areas.
4. Another free video resource is Careersbox, the national online careers film and video library, which presents resources in sectors, many of which are relevant to STEM, e.g. Energy and Engineering
    

  Add any comments about these sources below or better still, use the STEM Careers Helping Students Get The Message online community group on the National STEM Centre website.

Next STEM Getting Started section: Raising Awareness of STEM