Of all professions, engineering is ranked near the bottom in the UK in terms of the proportion of female applicants for university places, so the engineering industry is missing out on some of the best young talent available. Despite initiatives to increase the number of women entering engineering, there has been little change over the last decade. Engineering's popularity with males has declined over the same period. This paper discusses the findings of recent research into school students' perceptions of engineering. It identifies some of the barriers to engineering careers, including gender stereotyping, negative images and a lack of knowledge about the subject. The paper offers some solutions and concludes that schools, industry and higher education can work together to attract more young people of both sexes to engineering careers. (Contains 3 tables, 4 figures, and 1 note.)