A competition for an internship on a BP’s North Sea oil has boosted the number of engineering students applying to the energy firm.

Fifty-two teams, comprising three students in each team, from universities and colleges around the UK entered BP’s Ultimate Field Trip, which was aimed at science, technology, engineering & mathematics (STEM) students. Students were given a brief to develop innovative scientific ideas to tackle the problem of CO2 emissions.

At a grand final of five teams held at the Natural History Museum in London last night, a team from Imperial College London won the six to eight-week internship, which will involve working on a real business feasibility study.

Emma Hardaker-Jones (pictured), head of resourcing: sourcing and policy at BP, told Recruiter the competition “has played a role in increasing the number of applications from engineering students”.

“The number of applications from graduates has risen by 48% this year, while applications from internships are up 59%,” she adds.

Hardaker-Jones says the competition had two main objectives: to attract the talented graduates BP needs, and education. “There are many misconceptions about the oil & gas industry, and this helps graduates to make an informed choice.”

Hardaker-Jones adds that because of the high quality of all the teams at last year’s final, all 15 students would be guaranteed a job interview with BP when they graduate.