You are here: Home: Career sectors: Engineering: Areas of work: Automotive engineering
Automotive engineering covers the design, manufacture, distribution, marketing, sales and after-sales care of motor vehicles. Despite the focus on job losses resulting from recent plant closures, the UK hosts more car manufacturing companies than anywhere else in the world, and global organisations with UK bases include Honda, Nissan, Toyota, General Motors and BMW. The UK market is a microcosm of the world market: as well as the multinationals, other automotive employers include prestige, motorsports and niche manufacturers such as Bentley, Williams and Lotus, and independent manufacturing companies that supply automotive components.
The automotive industry is becoming ever more innovative. As the first major industry sector in the UK that has had to come to terms with global competition, there’s been a relentless drive to improve technology and cut costs: in other words to produce shorter design-to-manufacture lead times, as well as better and more affordable cars. The need to react to environmental concerns about global warming and to develop vehicles that can be manufactured and powered by sustainable energy sources is set to continue for the foreseeable future. It’s not only individual consumers who want more fuel-efficient and cleaner vehicles; businesses too are driving the demand for innovation and improvement, keen to save costs by paying fewer taxes on CO2 emissions.
There’s a requirement in the automotive industry for graduates with good engineering degrees and there are opportunities for significant career progression. However, you don’t need a degree in automotive engineering to work in the sector; what employers look for is a positive attitude, intellectual ability and raw talent. It’s an exacting but rewarding environment, with excellent working conditions and the chance to travel internationally.
A common route into the industry would be to join a graduate scheme. These typically offer you the chance to work on a range of placements, enabling you to find a direction that suits your talents and interests. The ability to work well within teams and communicate at all levels is essential, as is the capacity to respond to advice and give your own views. Business awareness is also an advantage. It may take three to five years to gain solid experience and establish your credibility, by which time your career could be progressing nicely. As well as design and manufacturing roles, an engineering degree provides a good basis for progressing into many other areas of the automotive industry, including business, logistics and commercial roles.
Always check individual employers’ requirements.
Stefan March is the director of the SMMT Industry Forum. Stefan is a chartered engineer and studied metallurgy at Aston University. He has been working in the automotive industry for over 27 years.
Register for job alerts and how to get hired advice
©2012 GTI Media Ltd. Registered in England No. 2347472.
Registered office: The Fountain Building, Howbery Park, Benson Lane, Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 8BA UK