UTC Reading is a

university technical college A university technical college (UTC) is a type of specialist secondary school in England that is led by a sponsor university and has close ties to local business and industry. These university and industry partners support the curriculum developm ...

(UTC) that opened in

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

, England in September 2013. The

University of Reading The University of Reading is a public university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as University College, Reading, a University of Oxford extension college. The institution received the power to grant its own degrees in 192 ...

Reading College Reading College is a further education college based in Reading, Berkshire, England. It has over 8,500 local learners on over 900 courses. The Kings Road site that is the principal location of Reading College has been used for further education ...

and

Oxford and Cherwell Valley College Activate Learning is an education and training group based in Oxford. It runs schools, further education colleges and work-based training across Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Surrey, and delivers higher-education and international study programmes ...

are the lead education sponsors of the UTC, while business partners include

Agilent Technologies Agilent Technologies, Inc. is an American life sciences company that provides instruments, software, services, and consumables for the entire laboratory workflow. Its global headquarters is located in Santa Clara, California. Agilent was establi ...

CGI Group CGI Inc. is a Canadian multinational information technology consulting and systems integration company headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. CGI has a market value of $21.8 billion, making it one of the top 30 companies in Canada. The co ...

Cisco Systems Cisco Systems, Inc., commonly known as Cisco, is an American-based multinational corporation, multinational digital communications technology conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco develo ...

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...

, Peter Brett Associates LLP and

Network Rail Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...

Admissions

UTC Reading has an annual initial intake of students aged 14 and 16 (academic years 10 and 12). The primary catchment area of the UTC includes Reading,

Wokingham Wokingham is a market town in Berkshire, England, west of London, southeast of Reading, north of Camberley and west of Bracknell. History Wokingham means 'Wocca's people's home'. Wocca was apparently a Saxon chieftain who may als ...

West Berkshire West Berkshire is a local government district in Berkshire, England, administered from Newbury by West Berkshire Council. History The district of Newbury was formed on 1 April 1974, as a merger of the borough of Newbury, Bradfield Rural Distric ...

South Oxfordshire South Oxfordshire is a local government district in the ceremonial county of Oxfordshire, England. Its council is temporarily based outside the district at Abingdon-on-Thames pending a planned move to Didcot, the district's largest town. The a ...

Basingstoke & Deane Basingstoke and Deane is a local government district and borough in Hampshire, England. Its primary settlement is Basingstoke. Other settlements include Bramley, Tadley, Kingsclere, Overton, Oakley, Whitchurch and the village of Deane, som ...

Bracknell Forest Bracknell Forest is a unitary authority area in Berkshire, southern England. It covers the two towns of Bracknell and Sandhurst and the village of Crowthorne and also includes the areas of North Ascot, Warfield and Winkfield. The borough bor ...

, Windsor & Maidenhead, Wycombe and

Hart Hart often refers to: * Hart (deer) Hart may also refer to: Organizations * Hart Racing Engines, a former Formula One engine manufacturer * Hart Skis, US ski manufacturer * Hart Stores, a Canadian chain of department stores * Hart's Reptile W ...

. Where the number of applications for admission to the UTC is greater than the number of places, a set percentage of places are allocated for students living in each part of the catchment area.

Curriculum

UTC Reading specialises in

computer science Computer science is the study of computation, automation, and information. Computer science spans theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, information theory, and automation) to Applied science, practical discipli ...

and

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

. Pupils aged 14 to 16 study a core number of

GCSEs The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...

and also choose a BTEC First Extended Certificate in either engineering or ICT.

Sixth form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for A-l ...

students choose between the specialisms and then take a programme of related study which can include

A Levels The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...

, BTECs and GCSEs.

Co-Curricular

UTC Reading established a

Combined Cadet Force The Combined Cadet Force (CCF) is a youth organisation in the United Kingdom, sponsored by the Ministry of Defence (MOD), which operates in schools, and normally includes Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force sections. Its aim is to "provide a ...

(RAF section) in January 2019, which has become very active. The UTC has good links to the British Army (REME) and Royal Navy, taking part in a number of Service challenges each year including the Royal Navy's annual Junior Field Gun Challenge. The UTC is active with

F1 in Schools ''F1 in Schools'' is an international STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) competition for school children (aged 11–19), in which groups of 3–6 students have to design and manufacture a miniature car out of the official F1 ...

Greenpower Green power or greenpower may refer to sustainable energy. The term may also refer to: * Greenpower Education Trust, a U.K. charity * GreenPower Motor Company * Green Power, a Hong Kong NGO * Green Power Forum, an English organisation * Green P ...

and has a number of STEM clubs such as a "Drones Club". UTC pupils have had some success in the local

TeenTech TeenTech is a not-for-profit Charity and Community Interest Company founded in 2008 by Maggie Philbin and Chris Dodson to help young people understand the real opportunities available in the contemporary STEM Stem or STEM may refer to: Plant str ...

competition. The UTC previously operated the now defunct student run online radio station, UTCR.Live. This provided students with leadership experience as well as usage of industry standard equipment. The UTC also strengthens its co-curricular activities by collaborating with local branches of some of the Professional Engineering Institutions (PEIs), most notable the

Institution of Engineering and Technology The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) is a multidisciplinary professional engineering institution. The IET was formed in 2006 from two separate institutions: the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE), dating back to 1871, and ...

, the

Institution of Civil Engineers The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association for civil engineers and a charitable body in the United Kingdom. Based in London, ICE has over 92,000 members, of whom three-quarters are located in the UK, whi ...

, the

Institution of Mechanical Engineers The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is an independent professional association and learned society headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that represents mechanical engineers and the engineering profession. With over 120,000 member ...

and the

Royal Aeronautical Society The Royal Aeronautical Society, also known as the RAeS, is a British multi-disciplinary professional institution dedicated to the global aerospace community. Founded in 1866, it is the oldest aeronautical society in the world. Members, Fellows ...

References

External links

* {{coord, 51, 26, 52, N, 0, 56, 23, W, type:edu_region:GB_dim:400, display=title Secondary schools in Reading, Berkshire University Technical Colleges University of Reading Educational institutions established in 2013 2013 establishments in England