Engineering (Integrated Logistics Support) - Level 6 Mechatronics Degree Apprenticeship

Thales; Belfast City District; Hybrid; GBP 22,000 - 26,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Salary £24k

Pension plan

Hybrid working

Health plan

Learning & development

Tuition paid

Volunteering hours

Life cover

Job summary

Thales in Belfast is offering a 4-year Degree Apprenticeship that blends university study with hands-on engineering experience. You will train as an Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) Engineer within the Services team, gaining exposure to real projects and customer sites while earning a salary.

Throughout the programme you will study towards a Level 6 Higher Apprenticeship, culminating in a BEng Mechatronic Engineering degree from Ulster University.

Qualifications

• A Levels: 112 UCAS points (BBC) with a STEM Grade B.
• GCSEs: five grades 4-9 including English & Maths.
• Equivalent BTEC Extended Diploma with Engineering Principles.

Responsibilities

• Support ILS planning and project activities within the Services team.
• Contribute to reviews and system testing/validation activities.
• Assist with engineering investigations and problem solving.
• Visit customer sites to support surveys, trials and deployments.
• Work with engineers on live projects and learn stakeholder communication.
• Engage in apprenticeship training and development activities.

Education

A Levels 112 UCAS points (BBC) including Grade B in STEM subject

GCSEs: five GCSEs at grade 4-9 including English and Maths

Equivalent BTEC Extended Diploma (DMM) including Engineering Principles

Job description

Turn your curiosity into a career.

If you're passionate about engineering, eager to learn, and looking for a degree apprenticeship that combines academic study with exciting on-the-job experience, we'd love to hear from you.

Benefits of the programme:

• Earn a salary while studying for your degree
• Gain hands-on experience in a real engineering environment
• Receive job-specific training and development
• Achieve a recognised engineering qualification
• Secure a permanent role from the start of your apprenticeship
• Have your university tuition fees fully paid

About the Role

This exciting apprenticeship will give you the skills, experience and knowledge to become a highly specialised Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) Engineer within the Services team.

Your responsibilities may include:

• Supporting systems requirements and design activities
• Contributing to project reviews
• Participating in system testing and validation activities
• Assisting with engineering investigations and problem solving
• Visiting customer sites, platforms and installations to support surveys, trials and system deployment where required
• Working with experienced engineers on live projects

What You Will Learn

Throughout the apprenticeship, you will gain experience and knowledge in:

• Assisting in ILS Planning: Helping develop and maintain ILS (Integrated Logistics Support) plans that align with project requirements.
• Supportability Analysis: Assisting with analyses such as Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA), Level of Repair Analysis (LORA), and Reliability, Availability and Maintainability (RAMT) studies, using a range of commercial and Thales-specific analytical tools and databases.
• Technical Documentation: Supporting the creation, review, and maintenance of technical documents such as user manuals, maintenance plans, parts lists, and support instructions.
• Data Collection & Management: Gathering and maintaining data on equipment and system performance, maintenance activities, and logistics metrics.
• Spare Parts & Supply Support: Supporting analysis to determine spares, tools, and test equipment requirements.
• Training Support: Assisting with the development of training materials.
• Maintenance Strategy Support: Helping develop and improve maintenance tasks and schedules.
• Working with Stakeholders: Learning to communicate effectively with engineers, project managers, customers, suppliers, and other relevant parties.
• Continuous Learning: Actively engaging in training and development activities provided through the apprenticeship programme.

Degree Apprenticeship Programme

You will be studying towards a Level 6 Higher Level Apprenticeship, finishing with a BEng Mechatronic Engineering degree, with our partners at the Ulster University in their Belfast campus.

This is a 4-year fast track programme. In the first year, you will attend university lectures and tutorials over 4 days per week, remotely complete Thales engineering project work and spend 1 day a week onsite developing your engineering knowledge. From year two onwards, you will be in university 1 day a week and 4 days working in engineering, embedding your university learning in a real-life engineering environment.

To apply, you will need:

A Levels

• 112 UCAS points (A Level BBC) including Grade B in a STEM Subject (Maths, Further Maths, Physics, Chemistry, DT, Engineering, Electronics, Double Award Science/Applied Science).
• Or equivalent BTEC Extended Diploma (DMM) to include a merit in Engineering Principles and Calculus to Solve Engineering Problems. Combination of smaller BTEC Diploma plus A levels or other acceptable Level 3 qualifications as per the Ulster University BEng Mechatronic Engineering degree entry requirements

GCSEs

• Minimum of five GCSEs at Grade 4-9 (A-C) in English and Maths

Please note that applicants who already hold a relevant degree will not be eligible for this programme.

Benefits

• Competitive salary of £24,000 per annum
• Performance-related pay uplifts
• Holiday entitlement of 201 hours a year (plus a company day and bank holidays)
• Contributory Company Pension
• Health Care Cash Plan
• Hybrid/flexible working options
• Employee assistance programme
• Learning and development support
• Employee discounts and wellbeing initiatives
• Life Cover
• 80 Hours Volunteering per year (first two years)

For further information about our Future Talent recruitment process, including hints and tips, or to connect with a member of the Future Talent Team, a Graduate, or an Apprentice, please visit Thales Future Talent - Connectr.

Please note, assessment centres for shortlisted candidates will be held between February - May 2027. Induction week for all Graduate and Apprentices will take place from Monday 6 September - Friday 10 September 2027.

Closing date: Our applications will close at 11.59pm on Wednesday 17 February 2027, this is the only time we will be accepting applications this year. Please note, we will be in contact by the end of February 2027 with details of next steps.

PLEASE NOTE THAT ROLES MAY CLOSE EARLIER THAN THE ADVERTISED DEADLINE IF WE RECEIVE A HIGH NUMER OF APPLICATIONS. WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO APPLY AS SOON AS POSSIBLE TO AVOID MISSING OUT ON THIS OPPORTUNITY.

Because of the work we do at Thales, all roles are subject to security requirements.

To be considered for this position, you must have the permanent right to work in the UK and be able to successfully complete and maintain UK Government security checks, including Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) screening and Security Clearance (SC), which is a government background check, before starting employment.

To be eligible for SC clearance, you will typically need to have lived in the UK continuously for the last five years. As part of the vetting process, you will be asked to provide evidence of your identity, right to work in the UK, any time spent overseas during the last five years, and your employment and/or education history.

About the Company

Thales is an equal opportunities employer and diversity, and inclusion are integral to the success of Thales.