Skip to content
Autotech Academy has collaborated with the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI) and the School of Thought Automotive to launch the first Automotive Work Experience Week (AWE24) which will take place from 15th April - 19th April 2024.
Designed to get to the heart of the current 22,000+ skills gap in the automotive industry, AWE24 is a call to action for the industry and, throughout the week, automotive employers will be encouraged to sign up to offer a week’s placement for at least one young person during 2024.
AWE24 will present the automotive sector as an exciting career choice for school leavers, address the current skills gap, and empower automotive employers to recognise the importance of offering work experience to young people. Leading industry figures are also set to share their work experience journeys.
While emphasising the pivotal role of work experience in nurturing young talent and addressing the industry's skills gap, AWE24 will also provide a new platform to highlight the diverse career paths available within the automotive sector.
Created in 2021 by Autotech Group to help qualified automotive college leavers secure a role within the industry through a paid internship, Autotech Academy has placed over 350 interns to date. 90% of those completing a 6-month internship receive a permanent automotive role.
In a concerted effort to ‘close the loop’ and fill the industry’s talent pipeline by attracting school-age pupils on the cusp of making further education decisions, Autotech Academy has been a long-term supporter of the School of Thought Automotive.
Established in 2019 as a not-for-profit organisation, the School of Thought Automotive works to elevate the profile of the automotive industry to Years 9-11 pupils, parents, and educational institutions.
Autotech Academy, the School of Thought Automotive, and the IMI are united in a shared desire to connect school pupils with the automotive sector and showcase it as an exciting career route while changing the industry’s perceptions amongst young people.
The groundbreaking launch of AWE24 is the culmination of this collaboration and a collective dedication to closing the industry’s skills gap.
“While Autotech Academy was created to support the transition of automotive students into the industry, we need to do more, as a sector, to raise the profile to a younger age group to get them onto automotive college courses and apprenticeship schemes in the first place,” comments James Mackay, Managing Director of Autotech Academy.
“As a company, we have worked closely with both the School of Thought Automotive and the IMI over the years and are now delighted to support the launch the inaugural Automotive Work Experience Week.
Through AWE24, our united aim is to change this narrative and showcase the automotive sector as an innovative, diverse, and exciting career route and attract a new generation. During the course of the week, we will be encouraging our automotive clients to pledge their support and commit to offering at least one young person a week’s work experience placement in 2024.”
For more information about Automotive Work Experience Week (AWE24) and how to offer a week’s work experience please visit Work Experience – Automotive School of Thought (schoolofthoughtautomotive.co.uk)