Why LJMU students are among the most employable in the UK
LJMU students have a bright future, with 93% in full time employment, further education or training within six months of graduating.
News readers, designers, judges, engineers – these are just some of the positions held by our graduates across the globe, and the University’s Racing Team are winning the employability race for engineering graduates.
The LJMU Racing Team has gone from strength to strength with a string of successful results over the past five years in the Formula Student in the Class 1 competition. This year they secured the highest point score to date 12th overall, and 4th highest team in the UK. Based at the Department of Maritime and Mechanical Engineering the LJMU Racing Team design and build their own single-seater racing car. They are judged on design, speed, endurance and environmental criteria against university departments from around the world. The LJMU Racing Team provides students with a platform for applying their academic knowledge in a practical way. The Team also includes members from other degree programmes across the University, who bring in aspects like media, business and marketing skills.
Involvement in Formula Student is valued by employers and many of the team alumni are now employed at organisations such as Aston Martin, Bentley, Sellafield and Caterpillar, amongst others.
Dean of the Faculty of Technology and Environment, Professor Ahmed Al-Shamma’a commented:
"Formula Student is an exciting challenge, which perfectly reflects the Higher Education Funding Council for England’s initiative to empower students and it is also an important employability programme. This is proven by the fact all the graduates from this year’s LJMU Racing Team already have guaranteed employment in companies like Aston Martin, Ford and Maclaren."
The Team works at the Vehicle Engineering Laboratory at Byrom Street, which hosts a driving simulator supplied by Force Dynamics. This is a research tool, particularly to evaluate new and emerging 'driver-in-the-loop' technologies in vehicle development. It is also used as a training platform for the LJMU Racing Team who model their vehicles and use it to prepare for events.
Many local and national companies have sponsored the Team over the years including Graham Engineering Ltd, as part of their positive approach to encouraging young engineers into the nuclear and manufacturing industry.
Ian Bannister, Managing Director of Graham Engineering Ltd, said:
"Graham Engineering were delighted to sponsor the LJMU Racing Team. For us the sponsorship programme has two fundamental objectives. The first being to support the future generation of engineers and to provide them with industry based support and opportunities. The second is that our sponsorship provides demonstrable evidence to our own customers that we are investing in the future of engineering through the development of potential employees and the academic process which will produce the Professional Engineers of the future."
Rhian Griffith, LJMU Racing Team Manager 2014/15, added:
"My time as team leader is coming to an end and I can honestly say that the experience has prepared me for third year and industry. The knowledge gained is priceless and not just in engineering, it allows us to travel the world, meet new people and push ourselves. I have overcome many obstacles alone and with the team and we were extremely pleased with the result we achieved this summer."
Charlotte Woodruffe, former LJMU Racing Team member, now designs tooling for Stolle Machinery, a leading supplier of two piece can and end-making machinery for the global canmaking industry.
"My role in the LJMU Racing Team was to head the cost and manufacture of the car. This involved working with a selected group of individuals, assigning them systems to work with and ensuring every piece of the car down to nuts and bolts was costed. Working with a small group of people helped me with my team work, time management and leadership skills. When I started my job, I quickly realised how important this experience was. I feel that the integration into the real world is much smoother as I knew what to expect."
Professor Ian Jenkinson, Director of the University's School of Engineering, Technology and Maritime Operations said:
"Employers use participation in activities such as Formula Student to identify potential employees. Success in this competition raises our University's profile both nationally and internationally and demonstrates the quality of our graduates."
The LJMU Racing Team’s work is supported by the whole University with input from the Estates Management and Finance teams through to the Liverpool Screen School.
Follow the Team’s 2015 progress on Twitter @LJMURacing
Search LJMU courses
