Applications open for Autocar Courland Next Generation Award 2017

Autocar and Courland Automotive have opened the Next Generation Award 2017 programme to all UK resident young adults aged 17-25.

The Award is designed to be a career springboard for young people aspiring to work in the automotive industry.

The winner of the 2017 competition will receive a £9000 cash prize, industry acclaim and a money-can’t-buy six-month work experience programme, shared between award sponsors Jaguar Land Rover, McLaren Automotive, Nissan, Toyota, Honda, and Horiba Mira, which has joined as a new award patron this year.

The competition invites entrants to submit an original idea or innovation that would improve the UK automotive business in one of five categories: mobility, connectivity, sustainability, customer experience or marketing and communication.

Prospective innovations can now apply to any element of the automotive business, from concept right through to the aftermarket sector.

Applications for the Autocar Courland Next Generation Award 2017 are now being accepted at Autocar Next Generation Award.

Launched in 2009, the Autocar Courland Next Generation Award is now a proven path into the UK auto industry. Next Generation Award finalists and winners go on to achieve great things and many have used the awards as a launchpad towards the commercialisation of their ideas.

In addition, many of our finalists have found industry positions. 2011 runner-up Katie Jones is a Colour and Materials designer at Jaguar Land Rover, 2012 finalist Jonathan Maynard is Lead Engineer for Interior and Exterior Components at Aston Martin, and 2012 winner Roberto Antonio Pace is a Design Engineer at McLaren Automotive.

Autocar Editor-in-Chief and Award head judge, Steve Cropley, said: “Now in its ninth year, the Award is an established fast-track for talented young adults wishing to kick-start dream careers in the automotive industry. Year after year, the judges and I are consistently amazed both by the standard and ingenuity of the entries and we look forward to seeing a multitude of new cross-category ideas coming through in 2017”.

Courland Automotive Global Managing Partner, Martin Bohling, said: “While we function principally at board level for the global automotive industry, it’s clear to us that the automotive industry has an acute need for young and diverse talent.

“We support this Autocar Courland Award because it offers an unparalleled opportunity for the bright industry leaders of tomorrow to gain first-hand experience of what it’s truly like to work with some of the best known automotive brands in the world.”

Entries to the 2017 Award will be open until 5pm on 29 August. Six finalists will be selected to present their innovations to the panel of judges in November, with the winner being announced at the annual dinner of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel on Tuesday, 28 November.

Award partners:                   

Autocar

Courland Automotive 

Honda

Horiba Mira

Jaguar Land Rover

McLaren Automotive 

Nissan

SMMT

Toyota GB

           

Previous winners:

2009                            Mohsin Basharmal                              Coventry University

2010                            Hari Meyyappan                                 Loughborough University

2011                            Oliver Brunt                                         Northumbria University

2012                            Roberto Antonio Pace                         Kingston University

2013                            Jake Larsson                                      Cranfield University

2014                            Nicole Agba                                        Coventry University

2015                            Morven Fraser                                    University of Glasgow

2016                            Joshua de Wit                                     University of Sussex

About Autocar: Autocar is the essential news, reviews, entertainment and reference title for committed car buyers and enthusiasts everywhere.

It specialises in revealing the secrets of new cars, while its famous road tests are used by the industry and consumers alike as the authoritative benchmark.

Autocar’s readers are recognised as the most influential in the UK. The knowledge they glean from the magazine and pass on leads to thousands of car purchases a year.

Autocar now has 13 editions worldwide, and its fast-growing website means Autocar now has 3.3 million readers a month, viewing 12.9 million pages.

Meanwhile, Autocar’s YouTube channel has become the most authoritative motoring video site in the world, garnering more than 250 million views and 550,000 subscribers.

About the award: The Autocar-Courland Next Generation Award was launched in 2009 by Autocar in partnership with Courland Automotive and the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders and was set up to find and nurture bright new talent for the automotive industry. Seven years on it has touched thousands of people and is regarded as the leading competition of its type.

The Next Generation Award challenges young talent to come up with a problem-solving idea or innovation that will improve the UK automotive business.

A team of industry judges assesses entrants ideas based on innovation, technical and commercial viability, and how easily the innovations can be implemented. The winner receives a £9000 prize plus a six-month work experience placement shared between the award sponsors.

The award is open to anyone aged between 17 and 25, as long as they reside in the UK or study at a UK school, college or university. All entrants must be eligible to work in the UK and be available for work experience.

Entries are put through an early round judging process that’s carried out by senior industry professionals. Six finalists will then be given a mentoring session with a partner judge before being invited to a presentation day at the Autocar HQ, Haymarket Central London office, Berners Street. The winner will be announced at the  Annual Dinner of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel on Tuesday, 28 November.