2026 Operational Real Estate & Asset Management Placement

Hilton Worldwide, Inc.; Watford; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading global hospitality company in Watford is seeking an EMEA Real Estate & Asset Management intern for a full-time placement starting in July 2026. The internship will involve supporting capital expenditure processes, conducting financial analyses, and contributing to hotel performance evaluations. Candidates must be current students with a relevant degree, eligible to work in the UK, and demonstrate strong analytical skills. Join us for an enriching experience in the hospitality industry.

Benefits

Subsidised restaurant

Free in-house gym

Networking opportunities

Qualifications

• A current student eligible for a 12-month placement in the UK.
• Fluency in English required.

Responsibilities

• Support the annual capital expenditure process.
• Provide analytical support for hotel performance assessments.
• Assist in financial analysis for investment projects.

Skills

Strong communication skills

Data analysis

MS Excel proficiency

Organizational skills

Interest in hospitality

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s in Economics, Mathematics, Business Management, or Hospitality

Job description

Overview

We are thrilled to share this unique opportunity for an ambitious student to gain experience within our Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) Real Estate & Asset Management International team. This team is responsible for all of Hilton’s real estate and asset management activities outside the Americas. This includes portfolio management activities for about 50 leased and joint-venture interests in hotels in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. The group's mandate is to enhance the long-term value of the existing portfolio through strategic capital investments, opportunistic contract restructurings, and improvement of bottom-line performance.

From day one, you will be fully integrated into Team Hilton. Our placements offer vast exposure and opportunities, including networking with senior executives, involvement in regional conferences and for some, international travel.

Based in our EMEA headquarters, Watford, you will be part of a cohort of 50 Interns and take part in regular connect meetings and feedback sessions designed to support your development. You will benefit from a subsidised restaurant, a games area and a free in-house gym.

The Opportunity

This internship offers you the opportunity to learn about hotel operational asset management, which should not be confused with financial asset management related to private equity or investment banking. As the EMEA Real Estate & Asset Management intern, you will be an integral part of the team and will play an active role in our continued success. You will focus on supporting the process of evaluating long-term asset enhancement opportunities of existing hotels in our portfolio. That includes review of capital investment programs, preparation of supporting schedules and Excel spreadsheets to evaluate/analyse annual capital spend and identifying/evaluating return on investment opportunities.

Responsibilities

• Support the team in the annual capital expenditure process: Consolidate and analyse submitted capital expenditure requests by hotels. Evaluate best deployment of capital into the respective properties. As necessary perform financial analysis to identify highest return on capital invested.
• Support annual capital expenditure budget presentation: Consolidate and summarise annual budget to be reviewed by Senior Vice President of Real Estate & Asset Management. Present data in a concise and intuitive way.
• Provide analytical and evaluative support for strategic assessment of hotel performance. Work closely with VP Asset Management to identify suitable strategies to enhance value of each property.
• Analyse return on investment projects based on NPV and IRR analysis. Individual is expected to be able to underwrite return on investment projects autonomously and to prepare investment memos for the CFO at the end of the placement.
• As necessary, assist team members in negotiating or restructuring hotel leases with landlords (A significant portion of the portfolio is operated under long–term leases many of which are expiring or up for rent renegotiation).

What we look for

• A strong sense of alignment to our culture and values.
• A current Bachelor’s or Master’s student studying toward a degree in Economics, Mathematics, Business Management or Hospitality with a required 12-month year in industry placement as part of your degree.
• Availability to start 13th of July 2026, full-time, for a 12-month placement.
• Eligibility to work in the UK. If you are a non-UK national, without EU Settled or Pre-Settled Status then you will need to be studying at a UK university to be eligible to undertake a placement here.
• Fluency in English (speaking, reading, and writing).
• The ability to demonstrate a genuine interest in hospitality as well as a general knowledge of hospitality finance and experience in analysing hotel metrics and reports (P&L statements, STR, etc.) would be preferred.
• Highly personable, able to demonstrate excellent communication and organisational skills.
• Strong data analysis, modelling and interpretation skills.
• An advanced user of MS Excel.
• An additional European language would be useful, although not essential.

What is it like working for Hilton?

Hilton is one of the world's largest and fastest-growing hospitality companies, with 24 distinct brands and over 8,000 locations. We have recently been ranked by our employees as #1 World's Best Hospitality Workplace awarded by Great Place to Work & Fortune.

We value and celebrate our team members' diversities and individualism and foster a culture of belonging across our organisation. Joining Hilton will give you the opportunity to contribute to our rich culture and give back to the community. Our Team Member Resource Groups in the UK focus on Abilities, Generations, Pride, Women’s and Ethnic representation. You can find details on our Culture page.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We will ensure that qualified individuals with protected disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions of the role. Please contact us to request accommodation.

Selection Process

Please apply now, applications close on Sunday 2nd November 2025. We receive a high volume of applications, so thank you for your patience while we carefully review each one to give it the attention it deserves.

If your application is successful, you may be invited to complete a one-way video interview and online assessment. These help us get to know you better and assess if the placement could be a great match. Keep an eye on your inbox, and we encourage you to complete each step as soon as you can. Our EMEA Graduate Recruitment Team will be in touch to let you know the outcome.

Good luck, we are looking forward to meeting you!