From a student Formula team to project management at Škoda Motorsport. As the story of engineer Jan Krasula shows, this can also be the career path of an enthusiastic designer. His story is also proof that long-term support for Formula Student teams is of great importance.
For Škoda Motorsport cars to continue collecting laurels for at least another 125 years, they need a steady supply of enthusiastic engineers and talented specialists from a wide range of fields. Supporting various educational projects is an excellent way of attracting them. One such project is the international Formula Student series, which Škoda Auto has traditionally supported - and which shows that this support really works in practice.
“I joined the Formula Student team during the final year of my university studies. It taught me a great deal, and in particular I gained hands-on experience of building a racing car,” says Jan Krasula, project manager for the development of the Škoda Fabia RS Rally2. The engineer, who graduated from Brno University of Technology in 2011, can now share his experience with the current Formula Student series participants from Czech universities.
“The Formula Student project is a great opportunity for students who want to gain real experience during their studies in areas such as car design, project management, time management and teamwork,” says Anna Piarová, captain of the TU Brno Racing team from Brno University of Technology, highlighting the benefits of the project. “Thanks to Formula Student, I have the opportunity to put into practice, in a real project, what I have learned at university,” adds Jan Domiter from the rival EFORCE Prague Formula team, whose members include students from the Czech Technical University in Prague and Škoda Auto University.
Krasula, who is now involved in the development of top-level Rally2 cars, confirms their experience: “In addition to technical knowledge, I learned above all how to work with people, how to delegate tasks, how to meet deadlines and how to make sure that we did not forget anything. Even a single small component can determine whether you will be able to test or not,” the engineer explains.
“These are insights I use every day in my professional career,” Krasula emphasises, highlighting the benefits of participating in such a project. He himself is aware that his involvement in the project gave him a solid foundation for later becoming part of the Škoda Motorsport team.
And that is precisely why the current support is so valuable: Škoda supports Czech university teams competing in the Formula Student series not only financially, but also through workshops, lectures and consultations with experts from within the company. In this way, it supports the enthusiasm of students who, like Jan Krasula, can later make use of the experience they have gained in their professional careers.
