Lincoln UTC
Engineering curriculum    

We want our students to be inspired to become the designers and engineers of the future… passionate about their ability to be a force for good and make positive changes to the lives of individuals and the big issues which affect us locally, nationally, and globally.

Our curriculum aims to support students in developing a deep appreciation of the greatest that has ever been achieved in design and manufacture and, in particular, of Britain’s proud heritage in these fields. Our students are the creative, innovative problem solvers of the next generation.

Our teaching ensures that students understand the moral, ethical and environmental concerns related to product design and manufacture such that they become an integral part of the solution, thinking and acting to promote responsibility and sustainability.

All of our engineering courses (design, manufacturing and systems and control) are sequenced so that students develop a mastery of the basic skills before learning how to code and operate computer-controlled processes and machines. Although their final designs will (most likely) be digital, engineers still need to be able to get their initial ideas on paper with a pencil and a drawing board. In industry, most manufacturing is highly automated, but the best engineers can still work with hand tools and produce prototypes on a traditional, manual lathe.

By the end of their course, all of our students will be ‘industry ready’ with a wealth of experience and training on industry standard equipment, and fluent in the use of the industry standard software which is necessary to operate it.

Our students will be assessed on a portfolio of their work linked to manufacturing and design challenges set, externally, by the examination boards. Students don’t start on their assessed projects until we are confident that they have all (regardless of prior attainment, disadvantage, or special educational need) achieved mastery of the skills and the knowledge necessary for examination success. Students achieve this mastery though practice and repetition, tackling multiple challenges and projects that we have designed in-house. All our in-house challenges are carefully chosen to cover the full range of skills required by the exam board but also to give students the opportunity to exercise ambition, creativity, and artistic flair, going above and beyond the specification requirements.

We believe that our students should be afforded the opportunity to learn about and develop the widest possible variety of skills regardless of whether or not they will, ultimately be examined. Sculpture, wood turning, and welding (for example) are not formally assessed skills but that doesn’t mean they don’t have the ability to enthuse and inspire our students. These, and other opportunities, crafts and processes are woven into both the taught curriculum and the extra-curricular offer for Lincoln UTC’s engineers.

KS5 - BTEC Engineering Extended Diploma & A Level Product Design 

Students in KS5 can study triple engineering and work towards the Pearson Edexcel BTEC Engineering Extended Diploma, which is equivalent to three A Levels. For this vocational route there are fifteen lessons a week. Those following an A Level route of study can choose A Level Product Design as an option, and expect five lessons a week.

KS5 have the ability to work within the engineering department during non-contact time with a dedicated work room and supervised access to workshops. Class size is small compared to many colleges in the country and students will often receive additional one-to-one support.

T Level in Engineering (equivalent to 3 A Levels)

In September 2022 Lincoln UTC will become the only provider in Lincolnshire to offer a T Level in Engineering, a new alternative to A Levels, apprenticeships and other 16-19 courses. The Department of Education recently launched T Levels to provide students with valuable experience in the workplace, allow employers to get early sight of new talent in their industry, and help to build a pipeline for junior positions or apprenticeships.

T Levels students will spend 80% of their course in the classroom learning the skills that employers need, and the other 20% (approximately 45 days) in a meaningful industry placement putting those skills in action.  

BTEC Extended Diploma in Engineering (equivalent to 3 A Levels) 

The course is built up from 15 units covering a wide range of engineering topics allowing for students to gain a broad and thorough understanding of the subject, including:

Unit 1 – Principles of Engineering (externally assessed exam 1.5hrs)

Unit 2 – Delivery of engineering processes safely as a team 

Unit 3 – Engineering product design and manufacture (externally assessed set task 8hrs) 

Unit 4 – Applied commercial and quality principles in engineering 

Unit 5 – A specialist engineering project 

Unit 6 – Microcontrollers systems for engineers (externally assessed set task 10hrs) 

Unit 7 – Calculus to solve engineering problems 

Unit 9 – Work experience in the engineering sector 

Unit 10 – Computer aided design (CAD) in engineering 

Unit 21 – Electronic measurement and testing of circuits 

Unit 22 – Electronic printed circuit board (PCB) design and manufacture 

Unit 24 – Maintenance of mechanical systems 

Unit 25 – Mechanical behaviour of metallic materials 

Unit 41 – Manufacturing secondary machining processes 

Unit 43 – Manufacturing computer numerical control (CNC) machining processes

A Level Product Design

This course is built up of 2 externally assessed exams and an iterative design project (non examined assessment - NEA). 

Exam 1 - Principles of Product Design – 1hr 30min – 80 marks (27% of overall grade)  

Exam 2 – Problem solving in Product Design – 1hr 45min – 70 marks (23% of overall grade)  

NEA – Iterative Design Project – 65hrs (Approx.) – 100 marks (50% of overall grade) 

The 2 examined elements will cover a range of theory around product design as a subject including; design process, the design cycle, fashion and trends, styles, iconic designs & designers, ethical and environmental considerations, legislations, communication of design, materials, prototyping & manufacture. 

The NEA is where students can address a design problem that they themselves identify and develop their own project to product a solution to the problem they have investigated. This project allows a huge amount of freedom for the students to take ownership of their work and produce products individual to them. Within the project students will research and investigate their problem, create sketches and development drawing of design solutions, use CAD to create a 3D virtual model, use modelling techniques including 3D printing laser cutting and hand tools to create physical prototype models and finally test and evaluated the success of the design outcome.