This week marks the fifth National Colleges Week (17th – 21st October) which was created to celebrate the great things that colleges do, day in, day out, to build communities, boost businesses, and support individuals.
The focus of Colleges Week 2022 is on Staff, Students and Skills. Autotech Academy was created to support both colleges and automotive students alike, ensuring that the skills learned at college are channelled into the automotive industry as soon as a Level 3 student qualifies.
Since its launch in January 2021, Autotech Academy has forged relationships with over 60 FE colleges across the UK, helping over 150 newly qualified Level 3 automotive students secure a role within the industry, while generating a new recruitment stream for the sector, which has been plagued by a skills shortage for years.
Working as a conduit between FE colleges and the motor industry, Autotech Academy sees the dedication which goes into running automotive courses: “Colleges are doing a great job in creating the future automotive workforce.” comments Gemma Edwards, National Careers Manager for Autotech Academy. “Not only are they equipping them with the necessary technical skills, but they are also preparing them for work and arming them with the softer skills, from time management to communication.”
“It is also important to note the evolution of the automotive industry, so much is changing from technology to new fuel alternatives and the colleges, while delivering the curriculum set by governing bodies, are working hard to ensure that their students are prepared. Lecturers are not only looking at sourcing the right equipment and vehicles to put learned theory into practice, but they are increasingly upskilling themselves. Through our Autotech Training division we have seen a rising number of college lecturers booking onto our EV training courses for instance and it’s a great example of how hard colleges are working to prepare the future workforce.”
“As our internship initiative is solely targeted at students who have completed their Level 3 qualification, our role is to not only help students make the transition into full time automotive employment, but to support colleges to keep students engaged and complete their course.”