Young people enjoy science, survey shows

29 April 2010

The first Wellcome Trust Monitor survey on attitudes to medical research reveals unanimous public support for research and shows that, contrary to popular belief, 81 per cent of young people find science lessons interesting.

Almost all respondents thought that medical research should be supported and encouraged, even if a lot of public money would need to be invested, though support was significantly higher for clinical research than for basic research.

The survey showed that young people look favourably at science as a possible career choice: 44 per cent said they were interested in pursuing a career in science, with medicine, forensic science and engineering the most popular choices.

"There has been a big push towards improving young people's experiences of science both inside and outside the classroom. It could be that these activities are beginning to pay off," said Professor Derek Bell, Trust Head of Education.