Graduate Mechanical Engineer Scheme | £32k + £2k Bonus

NETWORK RAIL; United Kingdom; On-site; Full time

Job description

Mechanical Engineering Graduate Scheme

Our 2-year Mechanical Engineering graduate scheme will give you the tools, and experience to kickstart your engineering career at Network Rail.

The scheme is focused and centred around developing your knowledge, experience, and ability in all aspects of your chosen engineering discipline alongside improving your awareness of the impact your decisions will have on our passenger and freight users.

You will have a genuine impact on the UK’s drive towards Net Zero through the sustainable management of the railway infrastructure, as the railway network adapts to the changing climate.

Our 2026 Mechanical Engineering Graduate Scheme is now closed for applications. You can register your interest for our 2027 programme below.

Salary: £32,000 plus a £2,000 welcome bonus

Start date: September 2027

What you’ll be doing

• Your scheme starts off with a period of business familiarisation, during this time you will gain an awareness and understanding of the railway system, across a broad range of disciplines and departments. This time is very precious as it will be the foundation on which the rest of your scheme is built, after which you will begin your longer formal placements within your chosen discipline.
• Throughout your scheme, you will be exposed to a wide variety of placements and activities across your discipline. During these placements you will contribute to the delivery of major investment, learn how to manage, and maintain the railway asset efficiently and effectively.
• As a Mechanical Engineering Graduate you will choose from a range of asset disciplines including Track, Signalling, Electrification, and Plant, experiencing everything from how the railway infrastructure is assessed, maintained, designed, and renewed.

Who you are matters

• You’ll need to have at least a 2:2 in an Institution Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) accredited degree and the flexibility to occasionally travel to attend training opportunities at various locations.
• We look for diverse and logical thinkers who can find creative solutions to challenging problems. You should be resourceful, hardworking, good at managing your time and motivating yourself.
• It is essential that you have great communication skills, are able to engage with people at all levels and be good at building relationships with your peers and colleagues.

What you’ll get out of it

In your first few weeks, we will help you to register with, and cover the costs for, the Institution of Mechanical Engineering. Each placement and training opportunity will be structured towards you becoming either a qualified Chartered Engineer (CEng) or Incorporated Engineer (IEng). Each year, you are required to submit your quarterly and annual reports to your Mentor to enable you to be assessed against the attributes and sign these off in accordance with your development action plan. This along with your continual professional development (CPD) record will set you on a trajectory to become IEng or CEng within a target of 3-4 years and 5-6 years respectively.

Your learning and development will be further supported with four modules of technical training. The first of these is designed to give you an overview of the engineering disciplines and safety qualification that you will require here at Network Rail. The remaining modules will relate to the specific disciplines you select. There will also be several leadership modules to help develop your soft skills and support you to become one of our future leaders.

After your two-year graduate scheme, you will continue to be supported by your Mentor as you transition into your first appointment, where you will continue with the next step on your professional development journey.

We matter to millions. You could too.