The first-ever university course to help former military personnel beat unemployment is to be launched in Birmingham – with hopes to roll it out nationally.

RAF veteran Kayam Iqbal, who served in the forces for 11-and-a-half years, has linked up with the University of Birmingham to offer the ex-military hopes of new careers. Kayam, 33, has set up a recruitment service – OppO Recruitment – and job board for ex-forces personnel, and a pilot course in railway risk and safety management will be launched at the University of Birmingham. The initial course, offering six places to candidates, is the first in the UK to provide tuition for former members of the armed forces, including those struggling to get a new job.

Kayam, who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, said: “Although there is no way of knowing the true figure, there are a huge amount of former armed forces personnel who are unemployed.

“When they apply for jobs, they are often up against people with a highly skilled civilian background. Competing with these people is extremely difficult, and there is a lot more that can be done to help.”

The University of Birmingham course, which runs from September to early December, provides programmes in railway risk and safety management, with modules in technology strategy, rolling stock and supply chain management.

“We are currently working closely with Professor Felix Schmidt at the university and are sponsoring ex military personnel to attend a number of modules for the railway safety and risk course. We very much hope to roll it out across the UK in the coming year.

“The average military person can adapt and adjust quite quickly given the chance and opportunity, but they have to be given the opportunity.”

Prof Schmidt said the first Birmingham course, funded by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation charity, would be followed at the University of Zhejiang in China in 2014.