Vacancy Details

Science & Maths Graduate Programme 2025

Job number: SP05947
Profession: Graduate
Location: Sellafield, West Cumbria
Contract type: Graduate
Salary: £40,802
Posting date: 02/09/2024
Closing date: 27/10/2024
Profession: Graduate
Science & Maths Graduate Programme 2025

Are you ready to play a significant part in the UK’s sustainable nuclear future?

Join our Graduate Development Programme and be a part of Sellafield Ltd’s mission of creating a clean and safe environment for future generations. Experience two years of comprehensive support, providing you with a unique place to grow your career and reach your unparalleled potential. We are committed to nurturing your talents, building your confidence, and enriching your expertise.

Our commitment doesn’t stop after two years. On successful completion of the Graduate scheme you can be offered a permanent contract with us. We will be there to support you through chartership, with a dedicated chartership mentor and likeminded colleagues that will be with you every step of the way.


Who are we?

We are delivering against national safety, security and energy needs. In operating, developing, and decommissioning the Sellafield site, we are also delivering the largest environmental restoration project in Europe.

In short, we solve complex nuclear, engineering, and infrastructure challenges for the UK every single day.

In the past, we have been responsible for breakthroughs such as the world’s first full-scale commercial nuclear power station, and today we are helping to keep lights on across the UK by safely receiving and storing spent nuclear fuel from the UK’s fleet of power stations.

Sellafield is the only site in the country that can safely manage all forms of nuclear waste, with our teams finding new ways to ensure it is kept safe until a permanent disposal facility is ready.
We are also guardians of the UK’s largest stockpile of nuclear materials.

Our world-class engineers and nuclear professionals tackle these challenges with the same spirit of innovation that has always run through our organisation.

All our activities are driven by a single purpose: to create a clean and safe environment for future generations.

We deliver on that purpose while providing value to:

• Our people – helping them to grow, develop and flourish;
• Our communities – creating a positive social impact in West Cumbria, Warrington and beyond; and
• Our industry – supporting the nation’s nuclear infrastructure, completing our decommissioning mission, and shaping best-practice standards.


The Graduate Programme:

The Graduate development programme is a two-year continuous professional development scheme, providing you with a unique place to grow your career and empower the next generation of nuclear professionals. The scheme aim is to enable, develop and shape early career professionals into innovative specialists to support the delivery of Sellafield’s mission. Whatever your aspiration, the Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programme equips you for success as a nuclear professional and delivers the start of a career in lifelong learning.  

Structured Support: Our dedicated Graduate development team will provide guidance and resources to make a meaningful difference to your learning journey in development days and outward bound, plus many more. As well as support from your technical pathways, who can offer discipline specific advice and guide you in your future career development.

Diverse Placements: Gain exposure to various business areas through strategically designed placements. This experience will help broaden your perspective on the wider nuclear industry and enhance your skill set by exposing you to challenges related to safely remediating the Sellafield site. Allowing you to contribute to a sustainable future.

Personalised Growth: We believe in holistic growth. Our programme is designed to bolster not only your technical proficiency within your discipline but also your understanding of the broader business landscape. Throughout the two-year programme, we will guide you towards achieving chartered status and develop you into a diverse, multi skilled professional.

Skills Development: Enhance your professional conduct by focusing on the development of fundamental skills. These skills are crucial in enabling you to thrive in a dynamic work environment and enhance the longevity of your career.

Connected Community: Our thriving graduate community, overseen by elected representatives, fosters a sense of belonging. Engage in regular social activities that complement your hard work, develop your social impact with charities and fundraising or climb a wainwright, all as part of the graduate community. Whatever your interests there is a social event for it, if not, you’ve got an opportunity to get involved and set one up.  


Science & Maths: Sellafield, Cumbria

Are you a science, environmental or maths graduate who wants to join world leaders in your field, and call them colleagues? Do you want to be part of delivering the largest environmental restoration project in Europe?

Our Technical area of the business consists of over 500 science, technology, engineering and maths specialists, who are at the forefront of innovation excellence.

As we manage the nuclear waste stored on the site and address the clean-up challenges we face, we must deliver value for money, using the best available techniques. The work carried out by our technical colleagues is varied and challenging and requires people who are both innovative and self-motivated. Current graduates identify the variety of work as one of the best parts of the job. Work involves problem solving and managing Research & Development tasks carried out by technical suppliers, then applying the output to solve Sellafield Ltd’s unique technology challenges.

There is also a chance to join our Environmental field – a multi-faceted growth area. You could be responsible for technical assessments of our industry leading environmental monitoring programme; negotiating with our regulators on permitting and compliance for some of the biggest construction projects in the UK; or advising on environmental and sustainability improvements to support the most critical legacy nuclear facilities in the world.

Our environmental colleagues work across a broad portfolio of work, making a meaningful difference in their contribution the UK’s sustainable nuclear future. Work includes: aerial dispersion modelling to biodiversity net gain; carbon management to cooling tower operations; discharge controls to energy management; management systems to permit applications; environmental policy and legislation to statutory reporting; regulator inspections to stakeholder engagement; wildlife management to water abstraction, and Yttrium to zeolites. If it relates to the environment, we are likely to cover it.

To learn more about our Technical profession, visit: https://careers.sellafieldsite.co.uk/graduates-placements/graduates/programme-areas/technical/
To learn more about our Environmental profession, visit: https://careers.sellafieldsite.co.uk/graduates-placements/graduates/programme-areas/environmental-support/


We are looking for:

For our Science & Maths programmes we are looking for graduates who have studied the following degree disciplines:

• Chemical Engineering, Process Engineering, any joint Honours Courses and similar degrees.
• Chemistry, Natural Science, Chemical Physics, Applied Chemistry, any joint Honours Courses and similar degrees.
• Materials Science, Materials Chemistry, Natural Science, Nuclear Engineering and Materials Science, any post-grad Materials course, any joint Honours Courses and similar degrees.
• Mathematics
• Physics, Astro Physics, Computational Chemistry, Computer Science
• Environmental Science, Environmental Management, Geological Science, Environmental Sustainability, Sustainability, Geography

If that’s you and you achieved at least a 2:2 classification or above in your degree, then hit apply now.

Please note: Working at Sellafield Ltd requires you to achieve both security and medical clearance throughout the on-boarding process.


What you will receive in return:

• Our graduates start off with a 24-month fixed term contract, with an excellent starting salary of £40,802, rising to £41,721 in your second year with us. Following successful completion of your graduate programme and subject to there being a suitable vacancy you will be retained on permanent basis with us.

• On top your annual salary, you’ll have the opportunity to benefit from an annual bonus, linked to company performance, of up to £4000*

• If you’re relocating here from more than 30 miles away, we’ll support you with a relocation allowance of £1,400 and give you plenty of information on the best areas to live and how to find a place too. £1,400 can provide you with rent cover for up to 3-months in some areas of West Cumbria.

• We know that moving on from university isn’t always easy. That’s why all our graduates can also apply for an interest free loan of £2,000 which you pay back through your monthly salary over your 24-month contract.

• We aim to strike a good work/life balance by offering 30 days annual leave with statutory public holidays on top. There is also the ability to purchase an additional 2.5 days leave on top.

• We also offer an attractive defined contribution pension scheme – the company will match up to 13.5% for a 7% employee contribution!

• All of our employees can benefit from our 18 support networks, including the Nuclear Autism Support Network, oneLGBTQ+ Network and Gender Balance Networks, to name a few.

• Other benefits include paid sick leave scheme, cycle to work scheme, family friendly policies, welfare & employee assistance programme, employee savings & discounts, plus many others.


Key Information:

• Applications for our graduate programmes will close on 27th October 2024.

• You will be issued an assessment to complete, the date you receive this will depend on when you apply. You will be given a deadline to complete this by and will find out the result of your assessment mid-November.

• Video interviews will take place from 11th November to 1st December 2024.

• For Cumbria based schemes, face to face assessment centres will take place in Workington, Cumbria on 22nd, 23rd, 27th & 28th January 2025.

• For Warrington based schemes, face to face assessment centres will take place in Risley, Warrington on 30th January 2025.

• We don’t want you to worry about getting to our assessment centre locations, financial support is available to those who may struggle to front the cost of travel upfront.

• *Please note, if you are unable to attend an assessment during these months you may be unable to complete our application process.

• Expected start date: 29th September 2025

• Sellafield has a proud vision of Diversity & Inclusion that aims to attract candidates into an inclusive and supportive workplace. We are honoured to be recognised as a Level 3 Disability Confident Employer. As users of the Disability Confident Scheme, you will be able to declare a disability when completing our application form or have the option to contact us directly should you require any assistance completing our application process.

• You are advised to regularly check your emails (including any junk mail/spam folders) for correspondence related to this post, including assessment or interview invitations and any other type of correspondence relating to your application.

Before you apply

Before you start your application, please complete our immersive, realistic preview into the life of a Graduate at Sellafield before you start your application. Completing this preview will take less than 10 minutes and will help you understand both the type of challenges you may encounter, and if you’re likely to enjoy working here.

Click below to begin our realistic scheme preview:

https://rjp.neurosight.ai/enc/GstpeCB9sNwskEQJLRjkleH9htp8BRlQ-SZZpMoxgd8

*Please note – requires an iPhone updated to at least iOS 14, or an updated Android device. Also accessible on tablets or laptops – Chrome is the recommended browser, although Safari also works on iO4 14 or better


Related documents

Science & Maths Blog.pdf

Science & Maths Blog 2.pdf

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