I’m graduating this year, as are a lot of my friends. It’s scary – for the first time ever we have absolutely no responsibilities and no structure, and for some it may be difficult trying to figure out what to do next, especially if you don’t quite know what it is you want to do with your life yet. That’s okay, though – something I didn’t know or realise is that there are so many graduate schemes and graduate employability options out there, lots of which train you in general work-life skills. Even if you start out at one place, it doesn’t mean you have to be working there in five years’ time! Here, we’ve compiled some of the top companies to work for in the UK – get planning!
They have an internship program, as well as allowing insight into commerce and fashion. ASOS has a vast variety of different graduate schemes and internships, including global trading, software engineering, and customer care. They also offer great staff perks, and were ranked the #1 employer on LinkedIn.
With offices around the UK, BBC is one of the world’s leading broadcasters, offers a wide variety of work from news to programming and journalism.
Regularly ranked highly on graduate employment lists, the investment banking company may be competitive but is sure to open many doors.
World’s largest banking and financial group, has four sectors: commercial banking, retail banking and wealth management, global banking and markets and global and private banking.
Offers paid two-week work experience programs throughout the year as well as 11-week internships in a variety of sectors in publishing during the summers. They run a ‘graduate’ scheme – The Scheme – that does not require a degree, and was BAME-only this year. They put a lot of effort into their work experiences, too, making them one of the top companies to work for in the UK.
They have a great ethos, and value giving back to the community. Recently ranked #3 on The Times ‘Best Companies to Work For’ list, and according to the report its staff were the proudest to work for Innocent out of all the other companies reviewed!
They offer paid puppy leave. As in, if you get a dog, you get paid time off to help the dog readjust. Which is all you need, really.
Not only are they one of the best-known companies in the world, they also give their employees free food. They regularly rank very highly on employee satisfaction, too. Their London offices offer business, MBA and software engineering internships!
Definitely one of the most exciting, ambitious (albeit somewhat problematic) companies to work for. You’ll definitely learn a lot, here. They’ve internships and graduate placements covering everything from product marketing management to UX research.
You can do a lot of great internships at Apple, such as the year-long product marketing internship.
This international insurance company has offices all around the UK, as well as offering a two-year graduate program with hands-on training. The program has an international proponent to it, too, meaning you’ll get to spend time at one of their overseas offices.
Not only is their work invaluable, but Cancer Research UK also offers fantastic graduate opportunities, making them one of the top companies to work for in the UK. Their graduate scheme has five different ‘streams’: Fundraising and marketing, corporate partnerships, policy and information, science communication and human resources. They also offer a variety of internships – all of which are now paid.
The network offers a multitude of work experiences, apprenticeships, training schemes, and more, across a vast field of skills – everything from investigative journalism to data science!
Yes, this is a highly competitive company to apply for, but it’ll be worth it if you get a position there. They’re currently ranked 18th on The Times Top Graduate Employers lists, too!
The makeup conglomerate is regularly ranked highly in employment lists, as well as offering a management development programme for graduates.
Their highly competitive advertising sales graduate scheme runs yearly, and offers fantastic benefits and chances for advancement. It’s a tough, fast-paced environment, but definitely rewarding – making it one of the top companies to work for in the UK.
Regularly in the top five for graduate employment, their graduate scheme (as an Area Manager) is perfect for anyone wanting to go into business or management. It’s incredibly well structured, offers a £44,000 starting salary, plus and Audi A4.
The charity does some truly amazing work, and offers a two-year Leadership Development Programme. Challenging, yes – but also incredibly rewarding. They offer summer internship programmes, too.
They offer one of the broadest ranges of graduate programmes I’ve ever seen – they’ve 13 different sectors to apply for, ranging from HR to purchasing and product engineering. Definitely an incredibly exciting environment to work for!
HarperCollins is one of the few publishing houses in the UK to offer graduate schemes. Their graduate programs last a year and they do not require degrees! Like Penguin, this year’s scheme was BAME only.
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