Automotive may not strike you initially as a green skills job market but just think about how the future will look with increasing electrification of vehicles and shared mobility structures. With the ban on traditional new vehicles being sold by 2030 the future of automotive skills is fast approaching, and you are currently teaching the future technicians of the sector.
How do I advise someone who wants to be an Electric Vehicle Technician?
Currently the way into this role is to qualify as a Light Vehicle Service Technician and then undertake specialist training in Electric Vehicle once you are qualified. As vehicles progress this may change in the future to be included in the initial qualification
Labour Market Information on EV
- The top qualification in 2021 q4 was IMI Level 3 Award in Electric/Hybrid vehicle system repair and replacement with 2139 certificates issued, which is 23% of all automotive qualification certificates
- 44% of automotive qualification certificates issued this quarter are for electric/hybrid qualifications. The second most popular subject is MOT (19%) followed by refrigerant handling (11%) and light vehicle maintenance (8%)
- A record number of technicians took electric vehicle qualifications eligible to obtain TechSafeTM professional recognition, in the first five and half months of 2022, some 7150. This is the highest amount since its introduction in 2016
- The number of technicians now qualified to work safely on electric vehicles is estimated at 31,700 the equivalent of 14% of technicians in the UK
Upcoming job roles
24,500 technicians are now qualified to work safely on electric vehicles.
In 2021, 9,000 technicians took electric vehicle qualifications eligible to obtain TechSafeTM professional recognition, which is the highest amount since its introduction in 2016 and is double the amount who qualified in 2020. The number of technicians now qualified to work safely on electric vehicles is estimated at 24,500, the equivalent of 11% of technicians in the UK.
Using the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) high scenario for predicting the number of EVs on UK roads, the IMI predicts that the number of TechSafeTM qualified technicians required to work with electric vehicles by 2030 is 90,000. As of 2021, there were 24,500 qualified TechSafeTM technicians, and using current forecast trends, by 2030, there could be a shortfall of 25,100 qualified technicians. However, significant take-up of electric vehicle qualifications in 2021 has led to readjusted forecasts that indicate that the shortfall in qualified technicians has been pushed from 2026 to 2027.
IMI Tech Safe
BBC Breakfast throws the spotlight on the EV technician deficit. Watch Steve Nash, CEO of the IMI talk about the challenges.
Watch the BBC interview here >> CLICK HERE
About National Careers Week
National Careers Week (NCW) is a one-week celebration of careers guidance and free resources in education across the UK. Our aim is to provide a focus for careers guidance activity at an important stage in the academic calendar to help support young people develop awareness and excitement about their future pathways.
NCW is a dedicated week every year allowing schools, colleges, universities, alternative provision settings and organisations to work towards. It’s backed-up with free high-quality printable, downloadable, digital and video resources for educators to support planning and delivery.
The resources and activities are available all year round so you can make any of your CEIAG / Careers activities come to life – whenever you do them. (But of course we’d really love you to get involved in NCW!)
During the pandemic we created and delivered your Virtual Careers Fair for NCW2021 and NCW2022 – reaching over 1 million young people and providing inspiration and interaction for Spring and Summer Term