For young people, understanding potential career options and choosing the right education pathway is an essential step in building a fulfilling career. Work experience offers a significant means of achieving that clarity, serving as a bridge between academic learning and real-world application.

This understanding lies at the heart of the School of Thought Automotive’s mission. Together with The Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI) and Autotech Academy, we launched the first-ever Automotive Work Experience Week (AWE) in April 2024.

This groundbreaking initiative aimed to address the pressing skills shortage in the automotive industry, estimated at nearly 18,000 vacancies while laying the foundation for a broader initiative—the Automotive Work Experience (AWE) Programme. This programme focuses on promoting and enabling work experiences across the industry, emphasising careers within the automotive sector.

By providing young people with critical workplace experiences, the AWE Programme aligns with Gatsby Benchmark 6, which encourages every student to engage in work experience at least twice before turning 18.

Central to this endeavour has been the launch of a dedicated portal on the School of Thought Automotive’s website, where businesses can pledge to offer work experience opportunities. This platform enables companies to tailor placements according to their needs, making them accessible in various forms, such as a day-long visit, a week-long program, or even a few hours per week.

These work experiences serve two purposes. First, they directly address the current skills shortage by introducing young talent to the automotive industry at an early age. Second, they establish a sustainable talent pipeline, ensuring the future of the sector. For students, such exposures are pivotal at a time when they are making crucial decisions about their educational and career pathways. Work experience allows them to translate their classroom learning into workplace contexts, enriching their understanding of what careers might suit them.

However, these initiatives must also strive to be inclusive, ensuring all young people—regardless of their background—can access such opportunities. By joining this movement, automotive businesses are not just addressing their immediate recruitment needs; they are investing in a stronger, more diverse industry for the future.

To all automotive employers, this is your opportunity to shape the future. By pledging work experience placements through the School of Thought Automotive’s portal, you contribute to the industry’s evolution and inspire the next generation of automotive professionals.

Sign up here today to pledge work experience for at least one young person in 2025.