Press Office Assistant (Undergraduate Placement Year 2027-28)

Welcome to Kia UK!

About Us

Kia UK is a leading automotive brand offering one of the industrys largest range of models across multiple vehicle segments contributing to it being the fourth most popular UK car brand in 2025. With more than 190 Kia dealerships across the country Kia is now widely known for its advanced electrified products offering the technology of tomorrow today.

Kia UK has consistently grown for over 30 years supported by bold design quality products and ever-evolving customer service. By 2027 the brand aims to offer no less than nine fully electric vehicles in the UK a positive step towards becoming a leading global sustainable mobility solutions provider.

People are central to Kia UK and every day is an opportunity to learn something new and to grow personally and professionally. This was recognised with Kia UK named as one of the UKs Best Workplacesand 2026 by Great Place To Work and also ranked in the 2025 & 2026 Best Workplaces for Women Development Wellbeing and Manufacturing Production & Transportation. Kia employees reported positively on areas such as working atmosphere trust in management corporate strategy pride in working for the company benefits facilities and much more!

• Running your own PR projects then developing the media exposure these projects receive

• Representing the brand in front of the UK media (including major product launches)

• Contributing to press releases pulling content from across the entire business

• Supporting our Head of PR PR Manager PR Operations Manager and wider Press Office team to achieve a best-in-class service to the UK media. Were consistently rated the no.1 automotive press office in the UK

• Monitoring media coverage and reporting back to the Head of PR as well as general reporting within Kia UK and to Kia Europe

• Supporting the PR Operations Manager and Events Coordinator in the creation and management of media events

• Networking with UK journalist at events industry organised gatherings and other opportunities

• Working with our agencies to ensure support us effectively

• Deal with a wide range of media enquiries and liaise with all business departments and suppliers

• Simple financial handling to ensure our projects and events go ahead as planned

• If you want we can arrange for you to do some work experience at one of the UKs leading automotive magazines no pressure!

Am I right for this

We dont want to discourage anybody from applying for this role by making a long list of requirements but to summarise: we want someone who is genuinely passionateabout PR so ideally studying for/just finished a relevant course (e.g. PR / Journalism / Writing / Media / Communication).

This role will encourage you to act quickly test your flexibility and motivate you to constantly adapt to new things (exactly what the media expects from us). You can get a hugeamount of experience knowledge and skills out of a year with us so wed love to welcome someone with big dreams that we can support.

We recognise that there may be a number of ways to meet our requirements. We are looking for the best candidate for the job and encourage you to apply even if your experience or qualifications dont exactly match what weve outlined in the role description. If you think you could be a good fit for this role wed love to hear from you.

Please note: for this role you will require a driving license as youll be required to travel across the country and Europe for events and projects.

The Benefits

• 24 days annual leave Bank Holidays

• Hybrid working (2 days a week remote working)

• Employee car scheme

• Onsite chef (free lunch every day)

• Private medical care & annual health check

• Private dental care

• Income protection critical illness protection & life assurance

• Pension with significant employer contribution

• Social events (Christmas Ball Staff Summer Event and other socials) and weekly sports clubs

• Opportunity to get involved with our charity partners

The Location

The Kia UK Head Office is based in Walton-on-Thames just a 5 minute walk from the station. We also have plenty of on-site parking for drivers including EV charging ports.

There is step-free access throughout the building but please let us know if you require any additional accessibility support and we will cater to your needs as best we can.

Interview Process

Step 1: CV review

Step 2: Video Interview

Step 3: Assessment Centre at our Head Office in Walton-On-Thames

We are committed to providing an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. We understand that every candidate is unique and we welcome the opportunity to make reasonable adjustments to ensure that all individuals can fully participate in our interview process. If you require any adjustments or support to facilitate your interview please do not hesitate to reach out to (). We are happy to discuss your needs and make arrangements that support your participation to best showcase your skills and qualifications.

At Kia we are committed to employing the best-qualified people and provide equal opportunity for the advancement of employees including promotion and training and thereby not discriminating against any person because of gender race ethnicity age sexual orientation religion belief or disability.