CY O'CONNOR Institute has given a young auto-enthusiast a kick start in his career.
Luke Cox, 18, from Bejoording is already wowing his employers at Northam Holden and Mazda with his knowledge and work ethic.
Luke graduated last year from Bindoon Catholic Agricultural College with a CY O'Connor Institute certificate II in automotive and a certificate II in engineering.
He admitted he had always been more passionate about the automotive side of his training and opted to follow a career as a mechanic.
Initially, Luke found employment at a dealership in Midland but decided city life wasn't for him.
Soon after Northam Holden and Mazda brought him into its fold and Luke said he hadn't looked back.
"So far it has been a great learning experience and every day I get to do something different," he said.
Luke said the head start of having already completed a certificate II in automotive was an advantage when it came time for him to seek employment.
"I already had a lot of the very basic knowledge of the job and I think it has helped me a lot," he said.
According to Luke, a career in the automotive industry is dynamic and exciting and he encouraged anyone with an interest to enrol in their local CY O'Connor Institute and kickstart their career.
Northam Holden and Mazda dealer principal Bryan Lee said he had been impressed with Luke and hoped he would be successful in his apprenticeship.
He said taking on young apprentices was a rewarding part of the job.
"Good young people are becoming increasingly hard to find so we really value them when we do find them," Mr Lee said.
"And it is always good to see these guys start out with completed certificates, it means they can hit the floor with some idea of the trade."
