Meet Dr Kieran Reeves, NMA's Director of Motorsport
A career built across education and motorsport
Kieran brings more than 25 years’ experience in Higher Education, with a career spanning lecturing, senior management and external examiner roles. During this time, he has written and validated numerous Automotive and Motorsport degree programmes, including some of the UK’s first Foundation Degree qualifications in the field.
At NMA, his role places him at the centre of course design, quality assurance and continuous improvement, helping to ensure every programme remains academically robust while staying closely aligned with the needs of the industry.
His academic background is equally impressive. Kieran holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Lancaster University, specialising in the energy management of hybrid race vehicles. His research involved developing his own machine learning and AI algorithms, leading to presentations across the UK, Europe and the United States to academic peers, Tier 1 suppliers and OEM audiences.
Hands-on industry experience
Alongside his academic work, Kieran has more than 30 years of hands-on experience in the automotive and motorsport industries.
His career has seen him compete at Chief Engineer level across multiple forms of motorsport, both trackside and off-circuit. Early on, he was involved in building long-distance rally vehicles for demanding events such as Manchester to Bombay and Panama to Alaska, before progressing into single-seater, open-wheel and GT racing categories.
Kieran has also held consultancy roles for several race teams, including GT Porsche programmes, where he contributed to the development of race-winning engine packages. He has also supported Formula Student teams with engine research and development strategies, helping the next generation of motorsport engineers gain valuable practical experience.
Connecting course delivery with the real world
In addition to his role as Director and tutor, Kieran is also Team Manager and Chief Engineer for Team NMA.
This means his work extends far beyond course development. Through Team NMA, Kieran helps ensure students are exposed to the realities of motorsport engineering, with course delivery informed by genuine race team experience, technical development and real-world problem-solving.
It is this combination of academic expertise and practical motorsport experience that helps keep the National Motorsport Academy closely connected to the industry it was created to serve.
With a career spanning education, research, race engineering and team management, Dr Kieran Reeves continues to play a key role in shaping the future of motorsport education at the National Motorsport Academy.
Through his work, NMA students benefit from programmes that are not only academically credible, but built around the realities of working in one of the world’s most demanding and fast-moving industries.
