the randstad williams engineering academy announces the successful students advancing into year 2.

Following the completion of the inaugural year of the Randstad Williams Engineering Academy, Randstad and Williams are pleased to announce the students from the Class of 2015 that have successfully made it through to the second year of this innovative new program.

The Randstad Williams Engineering Academy is the first program of its kind to identify young students from across the globe and guide them towards a career as Formula One engineers. Eleven students from six different countries joined the Academy in September 2015. Over the past twelve months, the students have completed a series of e-learning-based tasks on various motorsport engineering-related themes, an essay-based project, and received mentoring and tutoring from engineers at Williams.

This is a competitive scheme, with each cohort gradually whittled down in number from the time they join aged 16-18, until the completion of their university studies. Based on various performance criteria, Williams and Randstad have decided to retain eight students who will begin Year 2 of the program next month. These students are:

• Aaron Hannon, Republic of Ireland
• Ana Andrade, Portugal
• George Britton, USA
• Maximillian Britton, USA
• Devansh Dhard, Germany
• James Rodger, United Kingdom
• Rachel Scott, United Kingdom
• Declan Southern, United Kingdom

Declan Southern, aged 17 from the United Kingdom, has been named as the “Outstanding Student” for the year. Declan is currently studying Physics, Maths, French and Design and Technology (Systems and Control) at A Level, with a view to studying for a degree in Mechanical Engineering at university from September 2017.

Speaking about the performance of the Academy students Pat Symonds, Chief Technical Officer at Williams, said: “We have been extremely impressed by the caliber of the students and the dedication they have shown over the past twelve months. Their progress, both personally and educationally, has been astonishing and we are delighted to announce those who will be contouring on to year two. They will be continuing their e-learning curriculum which will start to turn theory into practice, with a greater practical element that will also test their team working skills.

Selecting who to keep and who will depart the program was incredibly difficult – everybody deserved a place - and to those leaving the program we thank them for their efforts and trust that they have had experiences that will stand them in good stead for the future.”

Mariella de Koning, CMO at Randstad Holding nv said: “It is amazing to witness what these students have accomplished in a year, truly inspirational. Scarcity in STEM profiles is a real issue in todays’ labor market. Tackling this early-on is vital to ensure students and candidates choose a career in STEM-related sectors. We are excited to see where the RWEA will be taking these promising young engineers, and how we can support them in building fulfilling careers.”

Announcing new students October 20, 2016

On October 19, Williams and Randstad will be selecting the students who will join the second cohort of the Academy from the students competing at the F1 in Schools World Finals in Austin, Texas. The names of these students will be announced on October 20. Details can be accessed at www.williamsf1.com/news or by emailing media@williamsf1.com or corporate.communications@randstadholding.com to sign up to the press release distribution list.

About the Randstad Williams Engineering Academy

• The Randstad Williams Engineering Academy is as an extra-curricular e-learning and vocational skills program.
•  To be eligible to apply, students must have made it through to that years F1 in Schools World Finals and be aged between 16 and 18 when enrolling. The Academy is open to candidates from all over the globe.
• This is a staged program that sees Williams support the students until the completion of their university studies. The curriculum includes motorsport engineering themed learning via an e-learning portal. It also includes a variety of work placements and mentoring opportunities with senior Williams engineers.
• This is a competitive program. Up to ten students join each year, and these numbers are gradually whittled down over the course of the Academy.

This is the first time a Formula One team has created an Academy for school age students that is designed to identify and mentor future engineering stars of the sport. This Academy forms a key part of Randstad and Williams’ commitment to encouraging the study of STEM subjects in schools and attracting more people into engineering related careers.