The IStructE Midland Counties Regional Hub’s Concept Design Course returns in 2027 in an in-person format. It runs over ten Thursday evenings and helps candidates for the Chartered Membership examination build the skill the exam tests most: producing sound, buildable structural concepts quickly and explaining the reasoning behind them.
Practising Chartered Engineers lead the sessions. Each one mixes short teaching inputs with hands-on work on exam-style briefs. You’ll practise turning a client brief into feasible structural schemes, comparing options, choosing a solution, and backing it up with quick hand calculations, clear sketches, and a well-organised letter to the client.
The course is also useful for engineers preparing for the Professional Review Interview (PRI). It covers concept creation and how to set out and justify design objectives, which assessors expect you to discuss with confidence.