Biotech Updates

Survey Reveals UK's Attitudes Towards Science and Medicine

May 22, 2013

Wellcome Trust, a global charitable foundation, commissioned a survey of 1,856 respondents (460 aged 14-18 and 1,396 adults) aiming to get the UK's attitudes to science, biomedical research, and science education. Some of the main findings in the survey are as follows:
  • 75% of the adults and 60% of the young people are interested in medical research.
  • Majority of the adults are familiar with the terms DNA and "genetically modified" but half of the total respondents are not familiar with "human genome".
  • 82% of the young respondents perceive science as an interesting subject in school (58% say that science is more interesting than math and English).
  • 41% of the young respondents said that they are interested in a career in science; 24% of them want to pursue a career in medicine, 21% in biology, 13% in forensic science, and 9% in engineering.
Read more findings at http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/News/Media-office/Press-releases/2013/WTP052617.htm.