#YourCareerMove quiz helps French student set off on the road to a career abroad in motorsport

Florian, 21, is a student in his final year studying for a BTS [Brevet de technicien supérieur – a higher education diploma in France] in vehicle maintenance, and he has already gained some work experience through an internship as a vehicle mechanic.

He has also done some seasonal work as a gardener at Bolbec Town Hall and volunteered at a youth hostel in Belgium, but he has never travelled further afield to work. He has a certain wanderlust, though, and is intrigued by the possibility of working in various different countries.

“My dream career would be a job which offers me the chance to travel around the world, as this would allow me to enrich my professional experience,” Florian says. “I’d like [to work in] the United Kingdom, Ireland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Scandinavia, Germany or Austria.”

When Florian came across the #YourCareerMove quiz on the EURES Facebook page, he realised it was not only a good chance to see if he would be well suited to expat life, but also a real opportunity to undertake an apprenticeship abroad. To have the chance of winning, Florian just had to answer a set of questions and make sure he had a jobseeker profile on the EURES job mobility portal.

Little did he know he would soon be chosen at random as the winner of the quiz and have the chance to chase his dream career abroad.

“I wasn’t expecting to win at all,” Florian admits. “I knew lots of people would be taking part in the quiz [more than 5,000 young people, in fact]. But when I found out that I had won the competition, I told myself that I needed to make the most of this opportunity and make sure it leads to something.”

As a reward, Florian will have his CV featured by EURES in a country of his choice. He speaks intermediate English and Spanish in addition to his native French, and it is important that any move abroad allows him to further improve his language skills.

“The UK, preferably, or Ireland would allow me to practice my English on a daily basis,” he says. “Belgium (Flanders), the Netherlands or one of the Scandinavian countries would also give me an opportunity to practice several languages including English.”

Florian is also aware that moving abroad could help him to progress quickly in his dream career in motorsport. “I am passionate about motorsport and hope to make a career out of it, preferably as an engineer,” he explains. “However, I am willing to take up another profession in motorsport if I don’t manage to find a business or training opportunity in engineering.”

Florian dreams of a job in the so-called Motorsport Valley in the UK, which is known as “the home of Formula 1” as it is the base of choice of many of the sport’s top teams. This, combined with a desire to consolidate his English-language skills, has led him to choose the town of Banbury in Oxfordshire as his preferred destination.

Florian will now have his CV featured by EURES in the UK, where he hopes the abundance of motorsport companies in close proximity to the famous Silverstone racing circuit could result in a dream opportunity.

For now, though, he is taking things one step at a time. “The next step for me is to obtain my diploma and then to either carry on with my studies here in France, or to start an apprenticeship abroad if this leads to an offer from a company,” he says.

Although Florian is keeping his feet firmly on the ground, he will be hoping that his success in the EURES quiz has taken him one step closer to his dream of a career in Formula 1.

#YourCareerMove was a multilingual quiz, featured on the EURES Facebook page in 2017, which aimed to raise awareness of the EURES network and its services. Several winners received ‘goodie bags’ as prizes, while the main winner won the chance to have their CV featured in an EU country of their choice. Keep an eye out for further opportunities on Facebook and set up your profile on the EURES portal to begin your job search today.

Related links:

Read more:

Find a EURES Adviser

Working and living conditions in EURES countries

EURES Jobs Database

EURES services for employers

EURES Events Calendar