Early careers at National Highways is your opportunity to help connect the country through learning and growing in a real-world job, with all the development and support you need to shape a bright future with us.
Our 2026 Early Careers opportunities are now open!
If you're looking for a graduate programme, a placement year, or a summer internship - now’s the time to apply and take the first step on your journey with us.
Can’t see a role that suits you right now? Keep checking back or follow us on social media for the latest updates.
Our offer
All our early careers offer:
- a competitive salary which increases as you complete each stage of your programme
- a dedicated line manager, a mentor and dedicated support from HR to guide and inspire you towards your goals
- access to learning development opportunities
- an early careers ‘buddy’ to help you settle in from day one
- a packed calendar of networking, events and socials as part of our early careers community these include our annual conference and awards
- a residential induction where you’ll learn all about the business as well as getting to meet your peers
- a permanent contract from day one
It takes all kinds of people to keep our roads moving. No matter what your background, if you have the passion and dedication to help connect the country and shape your future, you’ll be a great match.
Application process
First, you’ll complete an online application form, where we’ll ask why you’re interested in National Highways and the early careers programme you’re applying for. It’s your chance to tell us what excites you and why you think you’re a great fit.
As part of our application process, you’ll complete a short online assessment designed to help us understand how you think, work, and respond to different situations. There are no right or wrong answers - just a chance to show your strengths in different ways, so we can get a complete picture of who you are and how you might thrive with us.
If you’re shortlisted, we’ll invite you to a telephone or Teams interview with one of our recruiters. It’s all about getting to know you better and giving you chance to ask us questions too.
If successful, you’ll be invited to the final stage, which is a virtual assessment day, where you’ll meet our hiring managers and early careers team. We’ll give you all the details to help you prepare and shine if you reach this stage.
We’ll email you about the progress of your application after each stage, whether you’ve been successful or not. Please be patient, due to the large number of applications we receive this may take some time. However, we’ll update you as soon as we can.
If you have any questions at any time, there’ll be email and telephone contact details for our dedicated recruitment team included in all emails you receive during the process. We’ll be very happy to help you.
