The Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI), School of Thought Automotive and Autotech Academy joined forces to launch the first Automotive Work Experience Week (AWE24) which took place between 15th – 19th April 2024.
Designed to get to the heart of the current 22,000+ skills gap in automotive, the inaugural Automotive Work Experience Week (AWE24) encouraged automotive employers to sign up to offer a week’s placement for at least one young person during 2024.
The collaboration between the IMI, School of Thought Automotive and Autotech Academy showcased the wealth of career opportunities the sector has to offer, as well as featured work experience journeys from leading industry figures. By encouraging employers to offer a week’s work placement, AWE24 aimed to help youngsters on the cusp of making further education decisions gain invaluable insights into automotive as well as tackle the myths and misperceptions.
While emphasising the pivotal role of work experience in nurturing young talent and addressing the industry’s skills gap, AWE24 also provided another platform to highlight the diverse career paths available within the automotive sector.
Joanna Hollingdale, IMI Careers & Inclusion Manager, commented: “In today’s fast-changing automotive world, the importance of attracting and retaining young talent cannot be overstated. Yet the automotive sector is steeped in myths and misperceptions, with many believing there are limited career opportunities.
“Through AWE24, our united aim [was] to change this narrative and showcase automotive as an innovative, diverse, and exciting career route to attract a new generation. We need to work collaboratively as an industry to attract young people before they enter further education. Work experience is a vital way to achieve this. We are, therefore, urging as many organisations as possible to sign up and commit to offering at least one young person one week’s work experience placement during 2024.”
