The UK Innovation Report 2022

Policy questions and key messages

• Is the UK producing enough scientists and engineers?
• Is the UK government investing enough in technical and vocational education?
• How does this compare with other countries?

Tertiary education attainment in the UK is well above the OECD average – and a comparatively larger share of graduates is found in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines

• In 2020 the level of tertiary education attainment in the UK (49.4%) was above the OECD average (39%) and countries such as Italy (20.1%), Germany (31.3%) and France (39.7%).
• In 2019 graduates in STEM disciplines accounted for 43.4% of the total number of graduates in the UK, above comparator countries such as France (36.8%), Canada (37.8%) and the United States (37.6%).
• Within STEM disciplines the share of graduates in “engineering, manufacturing and construction” remains relatively low in the UK, at 8.4%, especially compared to countries such as Germany (27.8%) and Korea (20.7%).

Women are under-represented in STEM disciplines

• In 2019 women represented 25% of new entrants in “engineering, manufacturing and construction” degrees in the UK and 21% of new entrants in “ICT” degrees – these levels are similar to the OECD average.
• Only 27% of the STEM workforce in the UK is female, compared with 52% in the total workforce.
• For UK engineers a gender pay gap exists but it is smaller than the pay gap for all UK workers.

Higher technical education enrolment is comparatively low in the UK

• Enrolment rates in post-secondary education courses, below the standard three-year Bachelor’s degree, are comparatively low in the UK compared with countries such as the US, Korea and France.
• Following publication of the government’s White Paper, Skills for Jobs, new government programmes have been announced with the intention of addressing the “significant shortage of vital technician-level STEM skills”.

Tertiary education attainment

Source: OECD (2022). Adult education level (indicator).

• In 2020 the UK presented a level of tertiary education attainment (49.4%) that was well above the OECD average (39%) and countries such as Italy (20.1%), Germany (31.3%) and France (39.7%).
• Similarly to the OECD average, in the UK women’s tertiary education attainment level (51.8%) was higher than men’s attainment level (46.9%).
• Significant differences in tertiary education attainment levels exist across UK regions, ranging from 38% in North East England to 68% in Greater London, this being one of the highest regional variations across OECD countries.[1]
• In 2019 the share of foreign students enrolled in tertiary education courses in the UK was among the highest in the world (18.7%), only after Luxemburg (48.6%), Australia (28.4%) and New Zealand (20.8%).[2]
• The share of foreign students enrolled in tertiary education courses in 2019 was: 10.1% in Germany; 9.2% in France; and 5.2% in the USA.[2]

[1] OECD (2021) Education at Glance 2021 – United Kingdom Country Note.
[2] OECD (2022) International student mobility (indicator).

Graduates by subject areas

Note: Non-STEM subject areas include: arts and humanities; social sciences, journalism and information; business, administration and law; education; generic programmes and qualification; field unknown. Source: OECD (2021). Education at a Glance database.

• Although innovation encompasses several disciplines, graduates in STEM disciplines (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) are of particular importance to innovation activities.
• The importance of boosting STEM skills has also been recognised in the UK Innovation Strategy.^[1]
• In 2019, 431,820 students obtained a Bachelor degree from the UK’s higher education institutions.
• Graduates in STEM disciplines accounted for 43.4% of the total graduates in the UK in 2019. This value was above that for comparator countries such as France (36.8%), Canada (37.8%) and the United States (37.6%).
• The share of graduates in engineering, manufacturing and construction remains relatively low in the UK, at 8.4%, especially compared to countries such as Germany (27.8%) and Korea (20.7%).

^[1] BEIS (2021). UK Innovation Strategy – Leading the future by creating it.

STEM PhDs

Notes: STEM PhDs include doctoral degrees awarded in the following fields: natural sciences, mathematics and statistics; ICTs; engineering, manufacturing and construction; agriculture and related subjects; health. Source: NSF (2022). The State of US Science and Engineering 2022.

• In 2018 the UK’s higher education institutions awarded 17,366 PhDs in STEM disciplines.
• The UK is among the countries with the highest number of STEM PhDs awarded per year, even compared to countries with larger populations.
• The United States has historically been the country with the highest number of STEM PhDs awarded per year (41,071 in 2018).
• China is rapidly catching up with the USA in awarding STEM PhDs, from 7,766 doctoral degrees awarded in 2000, to 39,768 in 2018, representing an increase of 412% in 18 years.

Women in STEM tertiary education

Source: OECD (2021). Education at a Glance.

• Similarly to the OECD average, in the UK women are under-represented in some STEM fields of study.
• In the UK women represented 25% of new entrants in engineering, manufacturing and construction degrees (against the 26% OECD average) and 21% of new entrants in ICT degrees (against the 20% OECD average).
• Gender disparities in accessing STEM degrees are reflected in the labour market composition. Against 52% of the total workforce:[1]
  – 27% of the STEM workforce is female;
  – 40% of the science and maths workforce is female;
  – 21% of the technology workforce is female; and
  – 9% of the engineering workforce is female.

[1] British Science Association (2020). The State of the Sector: Diversity and representation in STEM industries in the UK.

Engineering profession salaries

Notes: Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes for the engineering professions based on Engineering UK (2018). The State of Engineering 2018. Source: ONS (2020). Earnings and hours worked, occupation by four-digit SOC: ASHE Table 14.

• In the UK the median salaries for engineering occupations are higher than the average in the job market.
• In 2019 the median gross annual salary for an engineering professional was £42,634, against the £30,378 median gross annual salary of all UK workers.^[1]
• For UK engineers, the gender pay gap is smaller than the pay gap for all UK workers and is mainly due to the under-representation of women in senior and higher-paid roles.^[2]

^[1] Although more recent data is available, the comparison of salaries by occupation in 2020 and 2021 may be impacted by job market support programmes implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic.

^[2] The gender pay gap is defined as “the difference in average hourly earnings for all men and all women across an organisation, a sector, or the economy as a whole”. See Royal Academy of Engineering (2020). Closing the engineering gender pay gap.

Government researchers

Note: OECD average data refers to 2018. Source: OECD (2022). Government researchers (indicator).

• The UK is among the OECD countries with the lowest proportion of researchers working for the government.[1]
• In 2019 the share of UK government researchers out of total researchers was 2.2%, against 6.5% of the OECD average.
• There have been calls for more people with STEM qualifications to be employed within the UK civil service for reasons connected to, for example, their ability to better understand specific policy issues related to science and technology.
• Analysis finds that the UK may be expected to have a relatively lower proportion of STEM-trained individuals within the civil service, potentially because of the lower starting salaries and the lower likelihood of undertaking skilled work in their area of training.[2]

[1] The OECD defines government researchers as “professionals working for government institutions engaged in the conception or creation of new knowledge, products, processes, methods and systems and also in the management of the projects concerned”

[2] Policy Links (2021). STEM professionals in the UK civil service: an international comparative study. IfM Engage, Institute for Manufacturing, University of Cambridge, Cambridge.

Higher technical education

Notes: Tertiary education includes: short-cycle tertiary education; Bachelor degrees; Master’s degrees; PhD degrees. Source: OECD (2021). Education at a Glance database.

The UK has a shortage of people qualified in higher technical education (HTE), that is, in those qualifications awarded between A level and undergraduate degrees.[1]
In 2019 students who were enrolled in short-cycle tertiary education in the UK made up 12.6% of the total tertiary education, compared to 36.4% for the USA, 23.3% for Canada and 21.7% for Korea.
Further to the 2019 Independent Review of Post-18 Education and Funding, in January 2021 the UK government published the further education White Paper, Skills for Jobs: Lifelong Learning for Opportunity and Growth.
To tackle the “significant shortage of vital technician-level STEM skills”, the White Paper made proposals such as expanding the Institutes of Technology programme, continuing with the T level programmes and, more generally, reforming the post-A-level education system.[2]
In June 2021 the government also announced a £30 million investment to support higher technical education in 2022. The funding has been allocated, among others, to the Institutes of Technology – consortia of further education colleges, universities and employers with a focus on STEM HTE – that will also work with the High Value Manufacturing Catapult.[3]
[1] In the Frameworks for Higher Education Qualifications of UK Degree-Awarding Bodies, HTE corresponds to Level 4 and Level 5, both corresponding to UNESCO ISCED Level 5. See Foster D. (2019). Level 4 and 5 education. House of Commons Library Briefing paper 8732.

[2] Hubble S. et at (2021). FE White Paper: Skills for Jobs: Lifelong Learning for Opportunity and Growth. House of Commons Library Briefing paper 9120.

[3] Donnelly A. (2021). Higher technical education gets a boost. Gatsby Charitable Foundation.

Green skills for net-zero transition

Source: Robins, N., Gouldson, A., Irwin, W. and Sudmant, A. (2019). Investing in a just transition in the UK – How investors can integrate social impact and place-based financing into climate strategies. London.

• The transition to a net-zero economy may impact 6.3 million jobs in the UK, with around 3 million workers requiring upskilling and 3 million in high demand.^a
• Construction, manufacturing and transport have been identified as the sectors that will be more impacted in terms of job upskilling: it is projected that between 17% and 30% of the jobs in these sectors will require upskilling.^[1]
• As highlighted by the independent report of the Green Jobs Taskforce announced by the UK government, “to set the direction for the job market as we transition to a high-skill, low-carbon economy”, STEM skills will underpin jobs that are critical for the net-zero transition.
• The Green Jobs Taskforce has also identified “cross-cutting” skills as important to transitioning to net zero, including: digital and data skills; project management; education communication and change management; and leadership, management and communication skills.
• The Green Jobs Taskforce has also highlighted the expected increase in demand for engineering technicians in sectors such as offshore wind and in electric vehicles’ manufacturing.

^[1] PCAN (2021). Tracking Local Employment In the Green Economy: The PCAN Just Transition Jobs Tracker. Place-based Climate Action Network.