2026 Mechanical Engineering Apprentice – Graduate Level Apprenticeship

Location: Glasgow, United KingdomThales people architect solutions that are relied upon to deliver operational advantage at every decisive moment throughout the mission. Defence and armed forces customers rely on us to deliver the full range of defensive systems for land, sea, and air. From early warning, to threat neutralisation, our platforms cover all levels from very short-range systems, to extended protection across the entire battle-space including Airspace Mobility Solutions, Vehicles and Tactical Systems and Missile Defence, Optronics, and Radar.Together we offer fantastic opportunities for committed employees to learn and develop their career with us. At Thales UK, we research, develop, and supply technology and services that impact the lives of millions of people each day to make life better, and keep us safer. We innovate across the major industries of Aerospace, Defence, Security and Space. Your health and well-being matters to us and that’s why we offer you the flexibility to do what’s important to you; whether that’s part time hours, job sharing, home working, or the ability to flex your start and finish times. Where possible, we support a working pattern that suits your lifestyle and helps you reach your ambitions.

2026 Mechanical Engineering Apprentice - Graduate Level Apprenticeship, Engineering for Design and Manufacture

Start Date: 07 September 2026

Salary: £24,000 per annum

Employee type: Permanent

Location: Glasgow

Working Schedule: 37 hours a week. University days are normally a Friday, where you would either attend University in person or virtually. Monday - Thursday are Thales working days where you will be on site at Thales in Glasgow or working from home, where suitable

Do you have an inquisitive mind?  Do you like to know how things work and are interested in engineering?  Are you looking for an employer who will sponsor you through a degree, whilst providing valuable and exciting on-the-job experience within a global, innovative and industry-leading organisation?  If so, read on to see what Thales has to offer…

What the role has to offer:

• Earn while you learn
• Job specific training experience
• Recognised qualifications
• A support network of students currently on the programme
• Various benefits and opportunities to grow your essential skills
• Permanent role from day one
• Tuition fees for university or approved training providers are fully covered

Thales Glasgow designs a range of state-of-the-art optronics solutions for the some of the most technically advanced defence and security platforms in the world.

As a Mechanical Engineer in our Glasgow office, you will work as part of a development team and be responsible for technical contributions towards leading edge naval or vehicles based products. This is a great opportunity to work on state of the art defence equipment and develop the latest optical systems for the MoD and a wide range of export customers around the world. This position will challenge your skills and you will have the flexibility to mould the role to suit your strengths and career development interests.

Key Responsibilities:

• MCAD design and development
• Environmental testing and product qualification
• Design for manufacture for mechanical designs
• Building prototypes for test and development

Apprentice Programme:

As a Mechanical Engineering Apprentice you will be studying at the University of Strathclyde towards a degree in Engineering: Design & Manufacture BEng (Hons).  For the duration of this 4 year programme, you will combine university studies with practical application, working within our Engineering function in Glasgow.

You will be given 1 day per week in which to focus on your studies. For the other 4 days you will be working in the business, applying your university learning in a real-life engineering environment.

Upon completion of the programme you will move into a permanent role within Thales in Glasgow.

Requirements:

• 4 Highers (BBBB) including Maths

Please note that for anyone who does not achieve their Maths Highers in 2026, they will be required by the university to sit a 9 week Maths course starting in April 2026. The Thales UK offer will be conditional on Strathclyde accepting you onto the programme.

Live and work in Scotland for the duration of the programme.

Benefits:

• 201 hours annual leave (plus a company day and bank holidays)
• Company Pension
• Health Care Cash Plan
• Life Insurance
• Discount Portal
• Performance-related pay uplifts
• 80 Hours Volunteering (first two years)

Please note, assessment centres for shortlisted candidates will be held between February - May 2026.  Induction week for all Graduates and Apprentices will take place from Monday 7 September - Friday 11 September 2026.

Closing date: Our applications will close at 11.59pm on Thursday 12 February 2026, this is the only time we will be accepting applications this year. Please note, we will be in contact by the end of February 2026 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.

Recruitment Process:

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.

Due to the nature of the work that we do at Thales, all of our roles are subject to security restrictions. 

All successful candidates must possess the permanent right to work in the UK, and will be required to go through Government security clearance at BPSS Level and to obtain full Security Clearance (SC) in line with the United Kingdom Security Vetting (UKSV) requirements below, prior to starting with us.

This role requires Security Clearance (SC). It would be advantageous if currently held, however, if not currently held, it is a requirement that the successful applicant undergo, achieve, and maintain SC Clearance prior to commencing employment.  Please visit the UKSV website for further guidance.

To be eligible for full SC, you generally need to have resided in the UK for the last 5 years. As part of the vetting process you will be asked to provide evidence of your identity, eligibility to work in the UK, time spent abroad over the last 5 years, as well as employment and / or educational history.

For further details of the evidence required to apply for security clearance please follow this link - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels.

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

In line with Thales' Baseline Security requirements, candidates will be asked to provide evidence of identity, eligibility to work in the UK and employment and/or education history for up to three years. Some vacancies may require full Security Clearance which can require further evidence to be provided. For further details of the evidence required to apply for Baseline and Security Clearance please refer to the Defence Business Services National Security Vetting (DBS NSV) Agency.

At Thales we provide CAREERS and not only jobs. With Thales employing 80,000 employees in 68 countries our mobility policy enables thousands of employees each year to develop their careers at home and abroad, in their existing areas of expertise or by branching out into new fields. Together we believe that embracing flexibility is a smarter way of working.

Thales UK is committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free recruitment process. We will provide reasonable adjustments and support to ensure neuro-diverse applicants or those with a disability or long-term condition can be their best during the recruitment process. To request an adjustment,if you need this job advert in an alternative format or if you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Resourcing Ops for mid to senior roles, or the Early Careers Team for graduate and apprentice roles.

Great journeys start here, apply now!