After driving De Montfort University Leicester (DMU)’s racing team to success at Silverstone, Mechanical Engineering student Nuri Uysal has secured a coveted job with Jaguar Land Rover.
Following a competitive recruitment process, the 22-year-old from London is due to start his position with the global luxury car manufacturer once he graduates from DMU in September.
Nuri said: “Getting this graduate job is proof that all of my efforts at DMU have paid off. As a nearly-qualified engineer, it makes me feel like I know lots of things about my chosen field.”
“I’m really looking forward to getting started,” he said. “The only thing I’m sad about is leaving Leicester – I really wanted to stay here. Leicester is like a mini London, it’s just as diverse and people are so friendly.”
The range of opportunities and experiences Nuri’s had at DMU played a key part in setting him apart both on paper and during his job interview.
Completing a work placement year as project manager for DMU Racing saw Nuri lead the team in designing, building and racing a single-seater car at Silverstone in the international Formula Student competition. Under his leadership, DMU Racing came sixth, securing its best ever finishing position.
“The role was great and it helped me to develop both my design and project management skills. Being responsible for a team of students, some postgraduates too, helped me to improve technically as I had to learn about and research around their designs, as well as my own,” said Nuri.
“I also learned about costing and budgeting – both major elements that count towards a team’s Formula Student ranking – and built on my presentation skills.
“As our team was relatively small, I got to make significant contributions to the design of our car, as well as mentor team members on how to design with an engineering mindset. I’m really quite happy that we managed to finish sixth out of 120 teams.”
During his first year at DMU, Nuri also set up the Engineering Society, which grew to 40 members, representing the university at numerous national student challenges.
He said: “Engineers are not always naturally social so I felt like we needed a hub where we could hang out. It was a way to take part in extra-curricular projects, cool ones like making robots, as well other fun things like movie nights.”
Originally, Nuri was drawn to studying electrical engineering, but was swayed by his desire to do something with more visual outcomes.
“You can’t see electrons moving, so I started exploring mechanical engineering, which is used in design and is applied to so many aspects of everyday life,” said Nuri.
“Having lived in Leicester for a year before considering university, I was keen to go to DMU because I loved the city. Luckily for me, unlike at other universities, Mechanical Engineering at DMU is very hands on and practical, which is my favourite way to learn.”
Looking forward to embarking on his career at Jaguar Land Rover, Nuri added: “I never imagined I would be working in the automotive industry. My advice to any student is to get involved in as many extra-curricular activities as you can.
“I feel like I got my money’s worth out of my time at DMU and had a lot of fun along the way. I can safely say I regret nothing.”
