A new School Science Awards Scheme is to be aimed at pre-Junior Certificate students in a selected number of schools in Cork, with a view to encouraging students to consider studying Science and Engineering.

The pilot scheme has been developed by the Chamber's Science, Research and Innovation (SRI) Policy Committee and is sponsored by Boston Scientific.

Cork Chamber, Chief Executive Conor Healy in announcing the launch of the Science Awards Scheme, said, "The Chamber was delighted with the enthusiasm demonstrated by the schools involved, as well as the generous sponsorship received from Boston Scientific. It is our hope to build on this initiative next year".

Brendan Keane, General Manager, FMC International and Chairman of the SRI Committee, added, "In light of the recent decline in the number of students choosing Science and Engineering programmes at third level, this pilot Scheme allows us to address this trend in a very practical way, by encouraging and rewarding the learning and experimentation that is fundamental to these disciplines".

Tom Mangan, MD of Boston Scientific Cork and a member of the Chamber's SRI Committee also said, "Boston Scientific is delighted to sponsor this initiative which encourages junior cycle second level students to consider the importance of Science as a subject of discovery and creativity. It is an innovative step in terms of stimulating a greater interest in these subjects among students and by addressing the skills requirement of locally based enterprises, we aim to provide Cork with a significant competitive advantage".

Successful applicants will be invited to display their work as part of the Cork Chamber Science Fair in UCC on November 15. The winning entries will also be showcased at Discovery Week organised by Cork City Learning Forum.

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