University news

Researchers from the University of Glasgow have played a key role in developing a new qualification which is set to open a fresh route into engineering for secondary pupils across Scotland.
 
Scotland's Infrastructure Pathway, launched last week at Panmure House in Edinburgh, gives young people hands-on experience of real-world infrastructure through an interactive 3D digital model.
 
The course was developed by Heriot-Watt University and Midlothian Council, using software from global infrastructure engineering company Bentley Systems.
 
The launch comes as Scotland plans £11.1 billion of infrastructure investment to drive growth, with the construction industry needing around 2,590 extra workers every year to 2030, according to the Construction Industry Training Board.
 
Piloted in four Midlothian schools with the University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt University, and in association with the University of Glasgow, the pathway leads to the, an SCQF Level 6 qualification accepted for engineering degree entry and aims to reach around 40 schools across Scotland next year.
 
The qualification at the centre of Scotland’s Infrastructure Pathway is the National Progression Award (NPA) in Built Environment within a Global Infrastructure, accredited at SCQF Level 6 (the same level as a B Higher). It is known informally as Global Infrastructure and the Built Environment (GIBE).
 
The James Watt School of Engineering’s Dr Daniel Mitchell has led Glasgow’s contributions to the development of the Pathway. He is also a research associate at the Digital Twinning for Transport Decarbonisation (TransiT) project. TransiT’s mission to harness digital twins and environments to shape sustainable futures is shared by the GIBE qualification.

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Dr Mitchell said: "Scotland's Infrastructure Pathway is now in its second year of deployment, with the curriculum being piloted across 30 schools this academic year. At a time when more than one million young people aged 16-24 across the UK are not in education, employment or training, initiatives like GIBE are helping to tackle this challenge by connecting learning directly to real-world careers. 
 
“By giving pupils hands-on experience of infrastructure, engineering and digital technologies, Scotland is taking a proactive approach to building the skilled workforce needed for the future and we are two years ahead of the UK in addressing this."
 
“TransiT stakeholders have already been engaging with GIBE given its mission to help inspire, educate and train the next generation of innovators who will shape sustainable futures.”
 
Alex MacLaren, Associate Professor of Architecture at Heriot-Watt University, said: “The Infrastructure Pathway is the result of three years of work by educators and industry leaders, side by side, to create something Scotland has never had before: a single, connected route from the primary classroom through secondary school, college, university and apprenticeships, and into employment.
 
"We believe it is the first initiative of its kind anywhere in the world. It was created by education and industry, for education and industry. 
 
“At its heart is a new qualification, widely accepted by Scotland's universities, which has pupils working directly with universities and industry partners on real infrastructure projects.
 
"Delivering a net zero economy, resilient communities and world-leading digital systems will need thousands of skilled people in engineering, construction, data, AI and environmental science, yet many young people have never been shown these careers. This pathway changes that.
 
“And because the curriculum is designed to evolve with industry, it will prepare young people for the world of work they will face in the future, not just the one that exists today.”

 
At the heart of the pathway is a digital twin, a 3D computer model of real buildings, streets, energy networks and more that works like an interactive map. Engineers use digital twins to plan and manage everything from roads to positions of wind turbines.
 
First developed to visualise energy data for Heriot-Watt's campus decarbonisation work, the model is built with Bentley Systems' Cesium software.
 
Pupils can click on buildings in their school to see the temperature of their classroom, watch Scotlands famously named gritter vehicles ‘Snow Place Like Home etc’ from Transport Scotland Data, and test their own ideas using real data on wind, energy, water and live sensors. The hands-on approach is designed to engage pupils who may not thrive in traditional maths and science lessons, providing them with new pathways to graduate apprenticeships or traditional university educations.
 
Industry normally needs software and computers costing hundreds of thousands of pounds for this kind of work. The pathway runs in an ordinary web browser on the Chromebooks and iPads pupils already use in school, and Bentley's technology is free for education.
 
Over an academic year, pupils also work with universities and industry partners, including Mott MacDonald and SSE, on real project scenarios. The qualification counts as the equivalent of a Higher for applications to study Engineering programmes at the University of Glasgow.
 
David Robertson, Director – University & Education Partnerships at Bentley Education, said: "What makes the Infrastructure Pathway special is that it puts real industry technology into pupils' hands on the devices they already have, and connects what they learn directly to the careers that exist across Scotland's infrastructure sector. 
 
“Scotland is the ideal place to show what's possible when education and industry work together at a national scale and this is a special project that will help increase education to talented students.”
 
Following the launch on Monday 19 October, the partners held events for schools and employers in Edinburgh and at Glasgow’s Mazumdar-Shaw Advanced Research Centre. This week, they will also hold events in Aberdeen on Thursday 29 October and Dundee on Friday 30 October.

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First published: 27 October 2026