by Milton Keynes College Apprentices Start Work With Red Bull Technology
| Published: 4th May 2012 15:59 |
Ten excited Milton Keynes College apprentices arrived at Red Bull Technology’s Milton Keynes headquarters on Monday 30th April to start a three-year apprenticeship in advanced engineering with TXM Recruit.
The young apprentices were selected from over seven hundred hopefuls who applied from all over the globe for these coveted positions to work with world’s number one F1 Team.
Three of those chosen are from Milton Keynes – Joshua Williams (18) from Kents Hill, Chris Walton (20) from Fenny Stratford, both students at Milton Keynes College and Luke Kelly (21) from Woburn Sands.
Apprentices arrive at Red Bull Technology
Apprentices with Andrew Midgley, TXM Recruit, Ian Carroll, Red Bull Technology and Gavin Cross, MK College
The search for the apprentices was conducted by Milton Keynes based TXM Recruit who coordinated the process. “We were thrilled with the response from prospective apprentices” said TXM Recruit’s Andrew Midgley. “We promoted the opportunities mainly through Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Sixty videos were uploaded to our website, giving a powerful sense of the passion and creativity of the applicants. The seven hundred were reduced to an initial shortlist of forty who were invited to the Red Bull Technology factory for a series of practical tests. From the in-depth selection tests the final ten were chosen. This was a tough decision but we are confident that we have selected engineering stars of the future.”
Gavin Cross, Head of Engineering at Milton Keynes College where the apprentices will study one day a week said: “Apprenticeships are a fantastic route which combine real work experience with gaining technical knowledge. We are delighted that Red Bull Technology, one of the most respected and exciting brands in the world, has chosen to work with Milton Keynes College and TXM Recruit to deliver these apprenticeships. It is a true demonstration of their confidence in our teaching and the state of the art facilities that we have at the College’s Innovation and Technology Centre.”
Christian Horner with the Apprentices
What the apprentices say:
Luke Kelly, 21, from Woburn Sands, Milton Keynes:
“Well first off I saw the website on the internet asking us to upload an application video so at home I made that with just my phone and submitted it and got through that stage. I then came down for some testing and online tests and from there got through again to the third stage which was practical testing and an interview.
I just want to get the skills to be able to stay working in this industry and just so I can carve a career in Formula One.”
Laurence Parlane, 19, from British Columbia, Canada:
“I hope to gain valuable experience and a position at the end of it with Red Bull Technology! It’s definitely a challenge, I hope to learn skills that will help me to reach my end goal to become an engineer for a Formula One team so obviously it’s a great foot in the door, when do you get an opportunity to get into an F1 circle? I like how it’s on the cutting edge, everything is top line, the best of the best.”
Aaron Westgarth, 17, from Northampton:
“First of all we had to apply with an application form that was online and you had to make a little video, and if you got selected from there you got a half day interview with a couple of tests and then if you got through that you had a full day interview with some practical assessment and a one-on-one interview.
Making the video was a big challenge, trying to think of something that would make you stand out, they wanted to see what you can do and how creative you can be.
I’m looking forward to being part of the team and helping Red Bull to win, all my friends are very jealous and I’m proud of myself for getting this far.
I think apprenticeships are getting more and more popular, I chose it over university and I’m not regretting it yet, all my friends are going off to uni and struggling with debt, so I’d just say apply to as many as you’re interested in with the hope of getting the one you want, I did!
What I want to achieve is just to be up there with the rest of them, I want to be an equal member of the team helping them win.”
Zoe Haycocks, 19, from Hertford:
“Well when I first applied I didn’t think I’d get in to be honest, I thought why not give it a try, I got an email from Connexions at school so thought I’d put in a video and answer all the questions and I got into the top forty and I was just like ‘wow’. Then I did the half day assessment, got through that and I just got more excited every time I came here, it’s just a bit of a shock to the system really that I got this far!
I did apply for uni as well and I got three places but the fees are so expensive I thought an apprenticeship was so much better, and obviously doing work experience for three years at the top motorsport engineering company is just the best thing anyway! I just want to get the best knowledge possible, they’ve got the best technology, the best everything so if I’m learning engineering here I will become one of the best engineers hopefully.”
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