Engineering & Automotive

Engineering drives everything around us. Electronic engineers assist in making your smartphone. Chemical engineers assist in testing your make-up. Automotive engineers have worked on your car.

To ‘engineer’ literally means to ‘make things happen’; it’s made for everything! You can do just that with us.

Workers in engineering include machine operators who carry out assembly work, craftspeople who are employed in maintenance, fabrication, welding & machining and engineering technicians who are involved in solving practical problems. It also includes electricians and electrical maintenance technicians working in both the domestic and industrial sector of electronics. You will find details of courses for domestic electrical installation on our Construction pages.

Engineering is a career with a bright future which offers excellent training opportunities and prospects in a wide range of fields. Career development at every level provides opportunities for progression to supervisory positions first as an engineering technician and then to senior posts as incorporated or chartered engineers.

• Automotive
• Design Engineer
• Engineering Crafts
• Engineering Technician
• Fabricator
• Manager
• Mechanical
• Electrical Engineer
• Production Engineer
• Vehicle Painter
• Vehicle Body Repairer
• Welder
• Weld Inspector
• Ship Builder
• Bridge Builder
• Motor Sport Engineer
• Race Engineer
• Fabrication & Welding

This is one of the few remaining crafts where there is the continuing challenge of developing new skills to meet different situations. Welding is a varied field – there is always an opportunity to learn more about the many processes and techniques. There are many career opportunities both in the UK and abroad as skills and qualifications obtained in this country are valid worldwide.

Mechanical engineering involves many different routes including analysis, design, manufacturing and maintenance of mechanical systems. You’ll develop a solid understanding of key concepts. Mechanical engineers use these principles and others in the design and analysis of things like machinery, aircraft, automobiles, medical devices and much more.

Employment is usually with garages, transport companies, road haulage companies or large organisations with fleets of vehicles. At technician level you’ll perform skilled diagnostic work, including work on electronic and computer controlled systems. The work is challenging and logical, involving a lot of problem solving. In larger companies, it’s usually possible to gain promotion to supervisory and management jobs.

The skills involved within body repair and refinishing vary from sectioning panels to valeting, MIG welding and rectifying paint defects. Employment is usually within garages, body shops and the motor sport industry that specialise in the repair of vehicles after accident damage.

Full time courses provide the first step towards qualified electrician status focusing on the industrial environment and include studying towards City & Guilds technical qualifications. The underpinning knowledge gained from studying a course will enable progression into associated electrical/electronic services. As an electrician you would need to be fit, have good colour vision, have a head for heights and be prepared to travel. It is a job for people with a discerning mind, where the safety of yourself and others demands attention to detail.

The Pathways to Apprenticeships Programme is a flexible route providing the underpinning knowledge and skills required in industry. Pathways learners spend up to one year on a full time intensive training programme which includes practical work experience and a Level 2 vocational qualification, as well as the knowledge and skills to help you progress to a full time Apprenticeship.

Coleg Gwent offers a range of courses including Pre-Apprenticeship programmes, progressing to further training up to university level courses and beyond.  Whether you want to study full time, day release or part time, we have a course for you.