The University of Akron Zips Racing team is internationally known as one of the best collegiate racing teams in the world.

According to a UA press release, Zips Racing, which has been competing internationally since 1990, has been ranked in the top 10 in the world, top five in the country and are on top of every other college in the Midwest.

The Zips are currently in their 2013 season and are racing a car named ZR13. The team is coming from their competition in Germany. The team’s next competition is in Toronto.

The team takes racing seriously, but they are also building a resume for their future careers.

According to the press release, the competition builds not only engineering experience, but soft skills like project management. The combination of these skills gives the Formula SAE team an advantage over other job candidates in the workforce.

“That’s what our program is designed to do — bridge education and career,” Kaley Zundel, the SAE International collegiate program manager, said in the press release.

SAE International expects excellence from returning teams like The University of Akron, which has been participating in Formula SAE since 1990.

“Akron has a great engineering program coupled with bright, motivated students and supportive faculty. They increase our program’s value yearly as they continue to take on the challenge of designing, fabricating and competing within the academic year,” Zundel said.

The Zips racing team continues to develop better cars. ZR13 is 15 percent lighter than their car last year. It is considered one of the best collegiate racing cars in the world.