Placement Opportunities  
Launch your career with a hands-on industry placement and gain real-world experience while still completing your degree. Our Placement Programme is designed for undergraduate students who want to apply their academic learning in a professional environment, contribute to meaningful projects, and develop valuable skills through practical experience, mentoring, and ongoing support.

Eligibility


To apply, you must be an undergraduate student currently in your second year and preparing to enter your third year of study. The placement is a 12-month fixed-term contract beginning in summer and forms part of a sandwich year at Level 6.

Technology – Technologist 
Join our Technology pathway and work alongside experienced engineers to design, build, test, and support innovative digital solutions. You'll gain hands-on experience across a range of technologies while developing the skills needed to build a successful career in software engineering.

Application: October
Start Date: Summer intake
Location: Belfast, Derry/Londonderry, Birmingham 

What could we be doing?

  • Developing software solutions for clients and products
  • Working with cloud technologies and modern engineering practices
  • Collaborating with multidisciplinary teams
  • Building skills across technical teams
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Business Analysis and Product Consulting - Product Consultant 
As a Product Consultant, you'll help customers maximise the value of Kainos products. Working at the intersection of business and technology, you'll collaborate with customers and product teams to deliver solutions that solve real-world challenges.

Application Window: October
Start Date: Summer intake
Locations: Belfast and Birmingham 


What could I be doing?
  • Working with customers to understand their business needs
  • Supporting product implementation and adoption 
  • Providing product expertise and guidence 
  • Collaborating with product and engineering teams

People – People Operations / HR
As a People Operations/HR Placement Student, you'll gain hands-on experience within Kainos' People Operations team, supporting a wide range of HR activities across the employee lifecycle. Working in a fast-paced and collaborative environment, you'll develop practical HR knowledge while contributing to meaningful projects and day-to-day people operations.

Application Window: February
Start Date: Summer intake 
Location: Belfast

​​​​​What could I be doing?
  • Developing a strong understnding of HR processes within a global technology company
  • Responding to internal and external HR queries, Providing excellent customer service and escalating where required
  • Assisting with HR projects and continuous improvement initiadtives 
  • Preparing communications, presentations, spreadsheets and reports 
  • Supporting the maintenance of HR systems and employee records
  • Working closely with the People Operations management team and wider business stakeholders
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Marketing – Recruitment Marketing 
As a Recruitment Marketing Placement Student, you'll help shape how Kainos attracts and engages top talent. Working across Talent Acquisition and Marketing, you'll create compelling content, promote career opportunities, and showcase our culture and people through a variety of digital channels. This is a hands-on role where creativity, initiative, and storytelling are key.

Application Window: February
Start Date: Summer intake
Location: Belfast

What could I be doing?
  • Create engaging written and video content for social media, careers pages, blogs, internal channels, and employer brand campaigns.
  • Plan, film, and edit content that showcases our people, culture, career opportunities, events, and Early Careers programmes.
  • Collaborate with teams across the business to identify stories, develop creative ideas, and bring authentic content to life.
  • Support recruitment marketing initiatives by promoting opportunities and enhancing our employer brand.
  • Monitor content performance, stay up to date with digital marketing trends, and develop valuable recruitment marketing, communication, and content creation skills.

Design - User Researcher 
If you're passionate about understanding people and designing services around their needs, our User Research role offers the opportunity to help shape better digital experiences through research and insight. You'll work as part of our growing Experience Design capability, delivering actionable insights that inform service design and ensure products are focused on real user needs. You'll be supported by a collaborative team of designers and researchers who are passionate about creating high-quality, user-centred services.

Application Window: February
Start Date: Summer intake
Location: Belfast

What could I be doing?
  • Plan and conduct user research to understand user needs, behaviours, and experiences, delivering insights that help shape products and services.
  • Support user-centred design, design thinking, and service design practices to create accessible, intuitive digital services focused on user outcomes.
  • Analyse research findings and communicate recommendations to designers, developers, and stakeholders to inform decision-making.
  • Contribute to workshops, discovery activities, and service improvement initiatives while developing practical research skills through mentoring, training, and hands-on project experience.
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Design - UX Designer 

 If you're passionate about creating intuitive and user-centred digital experiences, our UX Designer Placement offers the opportunity to help shape products and services that put users first. You'll work as part of our growing Experience Design capability, designing service experiences based on user needs and design principles while developing your skills in UX, design thinking, and service design. You'll be supported by a collaborative team of designers who are passionate about creating high-quality digital services that make a positive impact.

Application Window: February
Start Date: Summer intake
Location: Belfast

What could I be doing?
  • Designing intuitive user experiences and digital services 
  • Creating designs based on user needs and research insights 
  • Applying design thinking and service design principles 
  • Collaborating with designers, developers and stakeholders 
  • Supporting workshops and design activities 
  • Creating user journeys, wireframes and prototypes
  • Contributing to the design of accessible and inclusive services
  • Developing practical UK and service design skills through real projects 
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FAQs on hiring process

We are looking for Graduates, those seeking a Placement Year and Apprentices across different functions.

Our roles open at different times of the year, please review each pathway box to find out more information opening date and start date for the pathway you are interested in.

All of our roles are found on our careers site here: https://careers.kainos.com/gb/en/search-results for our EC roles you will also find any on our main webpage here: https://careers.kainos.com/gb/en/early-careers-and-evolving-talent as well as some of our main University Parntership career portals.

To apply for an Early Careers role, you must have unconditional right to work in the country where the role is based at the time of application, as defined by GOV.UK.

Your right to work must not be subject to an expiry or renewal date, restrictions on the type of work you can do, minimum salary requirements, or sponsorship.

British and Irish passport holders automatically have unconditional right to work in the UK.

Unfortunately, you are not currently eligible to apply, as we cannot provide sponsorship when your Post Study Work Visa expires.

For roles within our Digital Services Business Unit (which are governmental/ public sector), candidates appyling must be eligible for UK Security Clearance . This includes residing in the UK (including NI) for 5 consecutive years, and during which you have spent no more than 30 consecutive days outside of the UK (including NI). This is applicable to the following roles: Technologist, Product, User Research and Experienced Design.

To apply, you'll need to submit an application for a live vacancy on our careers site. As part of your application, you'll be asked to provide your personal details, upload your CV and complete a short questionnaire. Please take the time to complete the questionnaire fully and accurately. Once submitted, your application will be reviewed by a member of our team, and we'll keep you updated throughout the process.

A CV is required as part of your application and must be uploaded when applying for a role. A cover letter is optional and is entirely down to personal preference. If you choose to include a cover letter, it can be a useful way to tell us more about your interests, motivations and suitability for the role, but it is not a mandatory part of our application process.


Our recruitment process may vary slightly depending on the role, but typically includes:

Application – Submit your application online, and one of our team members will review it.

Assessment – You'll meet members of our team to discuss your skills, experience and interest in the role.

Outcome – We'll let you know the outcome of your application and provide updates throughout the process.

We'll make sure you know what to expect at each stage and provide plenty of information to help you prepare. Our Early Careers team is here to support you throughout the process, so don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.

The length of our recruitment process can vary depending on the role. To help you plan ahead, we include the application closing date and assessment days dates within the job description, so you'll have this information before you apply. We recommend reviewing the full job description carefully, as it will outline the key stages and timelines for that opportunity. We'll also keep you updated throughout the process and communicate any important next steps.

We have a section dedicated to this on our application form. Please be reassured that disclosing any personal information will not impact your likelihood of success in any way. This information will only be used to make reasonable adjustments, such as extra time for assessments. Please fill in the form honestly and provide us with details of adjustments that have been helpful to you previously.

We keep people at the centre of everything we do. While we use innovative technology to help make our recruitment process efficient and accessible, AI doesn't make hiring decisions. Every application is reviewed by our team, and you'll get to know us by name as we guide you through each stage of your Early Careers journey.

Should you choose to use AI tools to support your application, we ask that you do this thoughtfully. We encourage you to ensure your application reflects your own voice, experience, and motivations. We value authenticity and want to understand your individual strengths and perspectives.

There is no limit on the number of roles you can apply for. However, we encourage you to focus on the opportunity that best matches your skills, interests and career aspirations, rather than applying for multiple roles at once.

Our team reviews and progress applications as they’re received. While we advertise a closing date, if we receive a large volume of applications before this closing date we reserve the right to close the posting earlier. We therefore encourage applicants to apply as early as possible.

Yes. We welcome applications from candidates who have previously applied for one of our Early Careers opportunities. We understand that your skills, experience and interests may have developed since your last application, and we encourage you to apply again if you feel a role is a good fit for you.

If you attend an assessment day with us you’re welcome to request feedback, regardless of the outcome. Due to the volume of applications, we’re not able to provide feedback at the application stage.

The best way to stay connected with us is by joining our Talent Community. By signing up, you'll receive updates on Early Careers opportunities, company news, events and helpful information throughout the year. Join our Talent Community here: link and select Early Careers as your area of interest to receive the most relevant updates.

Sustainability and social responsibility are important to us at Kainos. We are committed to making a positive impact through our environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives, supporting our communities, and operating responsibly as we continue to grow. To learn more about our sustainability commitments, ESG approach and the work we're doing to create a positive impact, visit our Corporate Responsibility page: https://www.kainos.com/information/corporate-social-responsibility

At Kainos, we're proud of our welcoming, inclusive and collaborative culture. As an Early Careers colleague, you'll have opportunities to learn from experienced professionals, build your network, get involved in employee communities and make a real impact from day one. We also offer a range of benefits and wellbeing support to help you thrive both personally and professionally. To learn more about life at Kainos, our culture and the benefits we offer, visit our page here: https://careers.kainos.com/gb/en/life-at-kainos

At Kainos, we're committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone feels they belong. Our employee network groups bring together colleagues with shared interests, experiences and passions, providing opportunities to connect, learn and support one another. Whether you're looking to build your network, celebrate diversity, champion inclusion or get involved in the wider Kainos community, there are a range of groups you can join throughout your career with us. You can view our network groups here: https://careers.kainos.com/gb/en/life-at-kainos

Salary information is provided within the job description for each live vacancy. Be sure to review the full job description before applying.

Working arrangements vary depending on the role. Details of whether the position is hybrid, or office-based will be outlined in the job description, so we recommend reviewing this carefully before applying.

We've tried to cover the most common questions in our FAQs and across our website, but if you still need help, please get in touch with us at earlycareers@kainos.com. We're a small team working behind the scenes to support our candidates, so while we'll do our best to respond as quickly as possible, we appreciate your patience during busier periods.