Six public sector graduate schemes to know about

There are lots of exciting opportunities for grads in the public sector, including civil service and government graduate schemes.

We’ll cover some of the top public sector graduate schemes to look out for.

We’ll go through:

• What do typical public sector and government graduate schemes look like?
• Six public sector graduate schemes
  • Impact: The Local Government Graduate Programme
  • The Civil Service Fast Stream
  • Teach First
  • Police Now
  • NHS graduate programmes
  • Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) tech scheme
• What an ideal candidate is
• Career progression in the sector
• What you can expect to earn

A wide range of departments make up the public sector, including roles in government, education, energy, healthcare, emergency services, transit, social services, waste management, postal services and infrastructure. As a result, there’s a wide range of public sector graduate schemes. If you look around, you’ll likely find something that will suit you.

With most public sector grad schemes, you’ll develop skills on the job. You’ll learn by shadowing more experienced public servants and getting hands-on in your role, which might include interacting with the public.

Many public sector roles involve supporting society in some way – be it on a local, regional or national scale. Public sector graduate schemes require attentiveness, diligence and spirit, regardless of whether they’re associated with management in the NHS or a tech role in the Secret Intelligence Service. Want to play your part in society? Read on for our list of schemes.

As there are so many organisations within the public sector, there are numerous opportunities.

We’ve rounded up six grad schemes to explore:

Impact is a fast-track programme that matches grads with councils.

The local government graduate scheme is a two-year management development programme for grads from any degree discipline. It includes a range of placements based within a corporate function, a customer-facing area and a support service such as HR, finance, IT and legal services. One thing’s for sure: you’ll learn a lot.

Impact was previously known as the National Graduate Development Programme (NGDP), so you might still spot the government graduate scheme’s old name around.

The Civil Service is made up of government departments (eg. the Home Office, Department for Work and Pensions) and public bodies (eg. Office for National Statistics).

The Civil Service grad scheme is called Fast Stream.

There are currently 17 different Civil Service grad schemes, with pathways in the following areas:

• Commercial
• Cyber Security
• Digital
• Diplomatic and Development (with and without Economics)
• Finance
• Government Economics
• Government Operational Research Service
• Government Policy
• Government Social Research
• Government Statistical Service
• Human Resources
• Operational Delivery
• Project Delivery
• Property
• Risk Management
• Science and Engineering

Teach First is an education charity that funds training programmes for graduates to teach in disadvantaged areas. Its mission is to raise education standards and train bright graduates in leadership and teaching. It also focuses on attracting grads who haven’t considered a career in teaching before.

If you take on the Teach First Training Programme, you’ll earn as you learn. You’ll receive a salary while you train for your Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) and Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).

Police Now places graduates in certain police forces across England and Wales. Its mission is to transform communities, reduce crime and anti-social behaviour and increase the public's confidence in the police service.

The programme provides training in leadership and support with onward progression.

The NHS is the largest employer in the UK – and you don’t have to have gone to medical school to work for it.

There are many healthcare roles you can do without a medical degree. Plus, in addition to practitioners in clinics, surgeries and hospitals, the NHS needs people behind the scenes to keep everything running smoothly.

NHS offers many employment opportunities for graduates without health-related degrees, including the following grad schemes:

• NHS Scientist Training Programme (STP)
• NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme
• Accelerated programmes, which allow graduates to undertake training for healthcare roles in a shorter period

The Secret Intelligence Service, otherwise known as SIS or MI6, exists to maintain our national security and support the country’s economic wellbeing. SIS employees collect and work with information to detect and prevent serious crimes and work on sensitive international operations.

Sound like something you’d like to help with? SIS offers a two-year Technology Graduate Development Programme open to those with (or expecting) a 2:2 grade or higher in a science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) degree.

If you’re looking for more grad opportunities, discover other leading graduate employers in the public sector and government.

The ideal candidate for a public sector or government grad scheme will depend on the area of the industry. For example, some roles will require tech talent, while others will need people with organisational skills.

There’s no prototype for the ideal candidate in the public sector, given the varied nature of roles available. If a scheme sounds like it will suit you, apply and give it a go.

Whatever scheme you go for, you’ll stand a better chance of success if you’re passionate about what you want to do. The people who work in the public sector shape the world we live in. If you want to be a part of that, you need to care about your career and acknowledge its significance in society. Think you’ve got what it takes? That’s great! Learn more about the skills and qualities you need for the public sector.

There are many different career paths you could take in the public sector.

If you begin your public sector career with a grad scheme, there’s often an opportunity for immediate progression. Many programmes involve on-the-job training with clear paths to permanent positions.

The varied nature of roles means that there are significant differences across public sector salaries, both in graduate schemes and permanent roles.

Typically, though, most public sector and government graduate schemes will be transparent about earnings potential and will advertise the expected salary. That way, you’ll usually know how much you’ll earn before you apply.