All of the colleges and academys who run the above mentioned courses are in desperate need of talking to the MRO's. We all need up to date information on what is required of new recruits. Help us help you. We are here to stay, so we might as well work together!
Tranwell, if a major MRO is using you for the next 5 years and another interviews your students first, then surely you must be talking to the industry and know what is required of the new 'recruits'.
The students really need to be on a scheme where they, say, do a term at college/ academy, and then work on the hangar floor for a month at a MRO, and so on....in effect an apprenticeship scheme...partly sponsored by an MRO and partly funded by the government. That way they finish college with pieces of paper, 'real' practical experience and alot more of an idea of what is expected of them in the big wide world of civil aviation.....they could nearly, but not quite, hit the ground running.
The company I work for started taking on apprentices again nearly 3 years ago, who follow a similar scheme as to what I have described. It hasn't been a total success...some of the issues have been down to apprentice personalities and attitude, but it has been also noticeable that there has been a fundamental lack of communication between the company and college in coordinating and harmonising the apprentice's education and training. In my opinion, both parties have been at fault. I think that that is the key to turning out a well rounded potential maintenance engineer.....not giving them years of theory and tinkering on a 'dead' aircraft (not after year 1, anyway) and then letting them loose to the industry armed with a degree and lots of talk of how well prepared they are......'cos they're not.