Working in Government
Science and Engineering

About Us

Headed up by Dame Angela McLean, the Government Science & Engineering (GSE) Profession is an active group of people with one goal in common: to make a real difference through science and engineering in government.

To do this, we want to help embed science and engineering into government decision making, and raise the capability of individual scientists and engineers in government. Whether you are a scientist or engineer, or a decision maker who is interested in utilising expertise in these areas – the GSE Profession welcomes you and can provide you with tools to support your career.

Join Us

Government science and engineering roles are continually advertised through Civil Service Jobs. This includes a range of roles, specialisms and seniority level. Alternatively, the Science and Engineering Fast Stream will develop you into a confident and inspiring future senior leader in the civil service – supporting our ambition to put science and engineering at the heart of government policy. 

The GSE Profession Strategy aligns with the Declaration on Government Reform, which encourages those with specific, high-demand skills, particularly scientists and engineers, to consider a career in the Civil Service.  

Career-building is a critical area of the GSE Strategy and Declaration on Government Reform and fits in with the idea of “porosity”: helping scientists and engineers move more easily within the Civil Service and between academia, industry, the third sector, and government. This will help develop science capability on a large scale. 

For more information you can contact the profession at gse@go-science.gov.uk.

Careers

Having a skillset that combines technical expertise with leadership and adaptability of working in both technical and non-technical environments will make you widely employable across the civil service.

You may wish to specialise in specific areas or take on technical leadership and oversight roles, possibly influenced by your previous academic qualifications and experiences. You may want to apply your scientific or engineering mindset to a policy or operational delivery role by helping shape robust policy questions, and future-proofing solutions. 

Alternatively, you may decide to go into more direct leadership and management roles in non-technical environments, but still be affiliated with the science and engineering profession and continue to help promote science and engineering and the use of evidence-based decision making across government.

Whichever path you eventually choose, the GSE Profession will develop you into a confident and inspiring future senior leader in the civil service – supporting our ambition to put science and engineering at the heart of government policy.