Applications for this job are now closed
Are you interested in learning how we apply economics to regulate the UK communications sectors?
Communications play a crucial role in everyone's lives. As the regulator in this sector, Ofcom wants to make these markets work for everyone, and economics and data analysis are central to this.
Ofcom has one of the largest competition and regulatory economics, data analytics and finance teams in the UK working on issues related to the BBC, TV, radio and video-on-demand sectors, broadband, landlines, mobiles, online and postal services, plus the airwaves over which wireless devices operate.
In terms of the way we work, Ofcom’s culture is shaped by five important corporate values: excellence, agility, collaboration, empowerment and respect.
Our eight week summer internship programme is aimed at economics and data analytics students who are interested in gaining experience of applying their economics and/or data analytics skills to help solve real world problems.
We have roles available on two separate schemes within our summer internship programme:
- Economist: As an economist intern, you will contribute important economic analysis to help inform real decision making on live projects. Previous interns have contributed to the economic thinking and analysis in market reviews which are central to regulating the core UK internet infrastructure, assisted in the auction design of the UK 4G and 5G spectrum auctions, and worked on a competition assessment in the Broadcasting sector.
- Data analytics economist: As an intern data analytics economist, you will be involved in analysing data using tools such as econometrics and machine learning, to help explore the evidence and inform real decision making on live projects. Past interns have conducted econometric analysis to investigate the potential impact of mobile mergers on quality outcomes, used frontier data analytics techniques to study topics such as online disinformation (fake news) and media plurality on Twitter (looking at availability, consumption and impact of news), and helped to translate a suite of economic models into Python.
Prior to joining the scheme, we give interns the opportunity to express preferences on project areas, however the final project allocation is based on business need. Projects are allocated to interns based on these interests and skill sets so that they get the most out of the programme.
During your time with us, interns are invited to attend internal seminars and trainings, ran by the Economics Group, which give insight into the economic work conducted across Ofcom, and the wider organisation. Interns will also get the chance to meet with Economic Group colleagues, from graduates who will your buddy during the scheme to Directors sharing their experiences of Ofcom and roles they held beforehand.
In the past, successful interns have been offered places on Ofcom’s economist and data analyst economist graduate schemes, or fast tracked to Ofcom’s economist or data analyst graduate scheme assessment centres following their time on the internship. We look for strong economic or data skills and a passion for competition and regulatory economics as well as an ability to display the Ofcom values.
How the scheme works
Successful applicants will be aligned to one of our London, Manchester or Edinburgh offices for eight weeks between 1st July and 23rd August 2024. We ask that candidates identify their office preference, in addition to whether they prefer to work entirely remotely (remote working is not guaranteed but will be considered on an individual basis).
All interns will be paid a salary equivalent to the level of the London Living Wage.
Necessary requirements
At a minimum, applicants should be in their penultimate year of undergraduate studies. We also welcome applications from students taking part in postgraduate studies, or equivalent.
For our each of our streams:
- Economist stream: At least 50% of the course content should be sat in economics.
- Data analytics economist stream: You should have a basic understanding of quantitative tools in the fields of econometrics, artificial intelligence or machine learning and relevant analytical software (for example, Stata, Python or R) and some of your course content should be sat in economics.
Please only apply if you have right to work in the UK during the internship period (including if you are currently on a visa that allows you to work).
The application process
When you apply you will be asked to submit your CV and then you will be asked to complete a blended assessment. On successful review of your online application, you will be invited to take part in an interview with Economics Group colleagues over video platform.
Diversity & Inclusion at Ofcom
Ofcom is a forward-thinking, inclusive employer and recognises the value of diversity to truly make communications work for everyone. Our vision is to ensure Ofcom is a place where our people can work hard and be themselves. We aim to recruit from the widest pool of candidates possible – no matter your social background, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender or disability. We strive to be representative of the whole of the UK and our aim is to be an employer of choice for everyone.
We champion flexible working patterns including job shares where we can. Discover more about working at Ofcom at careers.ofcom.org.uk
We strive to ensure all our recruitment information and processes are accessible to and useable by everyone. If you would like to receive any information in a different way or would like us to do anything differently to help you apply for our roles, please let our recruitment team know by emailing resourcing@ofcom.org.uk or by telephone on 0330 912 1378.
As a Disability Confident employer, we offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for our advertised jobs. When you apply, you can let us know if you would like your application to be considered under this scheme (sometimes known as ‘guaranteed interview scheme’). Find out more about the scheme here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/jobs/disability-confident-scheme
