Graduate development programme
Our two-year graduate development programme is your opportunity, as an enterprising, motivated recent graduate or Master's graduate, to help deliver Wellcome’s mission to improve health.
What we offer
There are two different, full-time streams in our graduate programme:
- a general programme
- a specific investments programme.
General graduate development programme
Our two-year graduate programme enables you to develop core transferable skills and experience different teams across Wellcome – from research and policy to support functions and the Wellcome Collection.
It is your opportunity, as an enterprising, motivated recent graduate (with a Bachelor’s or Master’s), to help deliver Wellcome’s mission to improve health.
We want your experience on our general programme to be varied and fulfilling.
You will have the opportunity to work broadly across Wellcome, gaining all-round experience to better understand each area and how they all work together in support of our strategy, or you may be more specialised.
The Corporate Affairs team brings together Wellcome’s strengths in public engagement and communications to advance trust, influence and reputation in service of the health challenges and discovery research, so Wellcome creates lasting social impact and behaviour change.
Corporate Affairs teams:
- The Communications team shapes Wellcome’s reputation, brand and influence with both internal and external audiences.
- The Public Engagement and Campaigns team focuses on building trust, social impact and behaviour change, with target audiences important to our vision and ambitions.
- The Planning and Insight team ensures that all the other teams in Corporate Affairs (and beyond) work effectively together to deliver Wellcome’s shared objectives.
The Digital and Technology (D&T) team is here to ensure we have the digital services, products, data, and technology all wrapped up in great support service and experience needed for the organisation to be able to deliver its strategic vision and ambitions.
Digital and Technology teams:
- The Digital and Data team will develop a data strategy for Wellcome and provide expertise around digital and data delivery.
- The Technology team develops and manages the strategic and long-term objectives of the Technology function that meet the needs of Wellcome and the delivery of our strategy.
- The Experience Design team is responsible for delivering products and services for our users that are user-friendly and solve business and user problems.
- The Information Security team continues to develop the tools, training and automation required to increase information security across Wellcome.
- The Strategy and Governance team is responsible for coordinating the work and activities needed to implement D&T’s strategy in support of Wellcome’s strategy and vision.
The Finance team provides expertise in areas of finance, risk, procurement, control and general business management, to enable informed decision-making and high-quality delivery of organisational goals across Wellcome.
Finance teams:
- The Commercial Finance and Planning and Analysis team provide business partnering across the organisation to enable effective decision making, manage the financial planning process as well as producing analysis and reporting for the Executive Leadership team, the Board of Governors and to each area of the organisation.
- The Risk team has responsibility for monitoring risk in Wellcome’s investment portfolio and providing oversight of the risk environment across the whole of Wellcome, in line with our strategic ambitions.
- The Financial Accounting team ensures we manage our accounting and payments processes effectively and efficiently, play a huge role in producing the annual report and financial statements and work closely with the Investments team.
- The Procurement team are responsible for ensuring we have appropriate procurement policies and procedures in place and for helping the organisation navigate these.
- The Tax team have two main functions: to ensure compliance with our tax obligations and to provide expert input into business decisions or activities supporting both the Investments team and the rest of Wellcome whenever needed.
The Legal team’s purpose is to support the delivery of the new strategy with creative legal solutions, ensuring Wellcome complies fully with its legal, ethical, and regulatory obligations and upholds high standards of governance, ethics and conduct.
Legal teams:
- The Investments Legal team will continue to offer high-quality legal and transactional support to the Investments division, in collaboration with Finance and Tax colleagues.
- The Ethics, Governance and Compliance team is here to ensure we comply with all relevant legal and regulatory requirements, uphold high standards of governance, and to work across Wellcome and beyond to ensure that we all focus on how we do things and not just what we do.
The operations team is here to support Wellcome’s vision through a range of functions: research funding, finance, legal, digital and technology, risk and the central team. It is also about the extensive operations that deliver our free museum and library, which aim to challenge how we all think and feel about health.
Operations teams:
- The International Operations team supports the successful delivery of, and effective cross-Wellcome coordination on, Wellcome’s international programmes, working with colleagues in Research Programmes and beyond.
- The Internal Audit team provide risk-based assurance to both Executive management and the Board of Governors via the Audit and Risk Committee across all aspects of Wellcome activities.
- The Central team provides effective support to the Director and Chair, including delivery of secretariat functions to the Board of Governors, Executive Leadership team and its subgroups.
- Wellcome Collection is Wellcome’s free museum about health and being human. Its vision is to be a place that challenges the ways people think and feel about health by connecting science, medicine, life and art.
The delivery of our new strategy is fundamentally dependent on the skills, wellbeing and motivation of our people. We know we can’t hope to solve the urgent health challenges facing everyone without investing in our people.
People teams:
- The Culture, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion team brings direction, accountability, expertise and support to our journey to become an inclusive employer and funder, and build an internal culture that supports our people and drives behaviours that further our mission.
- The Environment and Workplace Services team provides specialist, person-centred expertise to Wellcome and our partners in our buildings, global events and global travel.
- The People Operations team provides expertise and guidance on all people and employment matters.
- The People Strategy and Transformation team enables the organisation to connect so that complex team and organisation-wide people projects and major BAU (business as usual) are implemented effectively, reflecting lessons we’ve learned from past initiatives.
- The Reward and Wellbeing team contributes to the attraction and retention of the talent needed to deliver our strategy by making Wellcome a great place to work. We create, implement and manage inclusive, coherent, competitive, market-facing, fit-for-purpose and equitable compensation, benefits, health, safety and wellbeing strategies.
- The Talent team focuses on recruitment, development and performance within a culture that is owned by everyone.
Research Funding (previously called Grants) enables, supports and manages all of the funding operations for Wellcome.
Research Funding teams:
- The Funding Management team comprises our teams of grants advisors. They manage and deliver the end-to-end grants application and award process.
- The Funding Operations and Governance team provides the underlying operational and governance framework for Wellcome’s funding activities.
- The Funding Logistics team provides specialised support for discovery research and the health challenge programmes in their directed and discretionary funding and implementation of funding calls.
Research, in all its forms, is central to Wellcome’s vision to solve the urgent health challenges facing everyone.
To this end we fund discovery research across a wide range of disciplines, with the intention of coming to understand life, health and wellbeing at their deepest levels. We also support research, resources and innovation across three health challenges: mental health, the health impact of climate change and infectious diseases.
Research Programmes teams:
- The Discovery Research team brings together open mode and directed funding to achieve significant shifts in our understanding of life, health and wellbeing – both through research and through the generation of new tools.
- The Climate and Health team bring together a wide range of activities to achieve the long-term vision that climate change does not harm health in the most affected communities, while keeping the needs of these communities at the heart of the programme.
- The Mental Health team brings together a wide range of activities to achieve the long-term vision of a world in which no one is held back by mental health problems. The team’s mission is to find better ways to prevent and treat anxiety, depression and psychosis globally.
- The Infectious Disease team bring together a wide range of activities to achieve the long-term vision of a world in which escalating infectious diseases are under control in the communities most affected.
- The Translation and Portfolio Integration team coordinate translation support for discovery research and the three health challenges and ensure that the four programmes form an integrated portfolio in line with Wellcome’s vision and ambitions.
- The Data for Science and Health team support trustworthy data science that transforms how science solves health challenges and makes discoveries.
- The Research Environment team leads Wellcome’s coordinated activities to shape the research environment in pursuit of Wellcome’s vision and ambitions.
The Strategy team’s job is to help all of Wellcome to set and implement an inspiring strategy, to work across Wellcome to develop and champion the ambitious changes we want to see in the world, and to build the partnerships we need to deliver this.
Strategy teams:
- The Strategy and Programme Office helps to implement Wellcome’s strategy, set our future direction and priorities, and understand whether we are achieving the long-term impact that we want as an organisation.
- The Transition and Legacy team leads Wellcome’s work to close the areas of funding and direct activities that don’t fit with our new strategy.
- The Policy team leads Wellcome’s efforts to set our influence priorities for decision-makers on each of the health challenges and discovery research programmes and develop our arguments and act as expert advocates to deliver these goals.
- The Government Relations and Strategic Partnerships team leads Wellcome’s efforts to establish and deepen its strategic partnerships and influence key organisations who can help us to deliver our mission.
General programme key dates
Applications open: 3 October to 13 November 2022
Video interviews: week commencing 9 January 2023
Assessment centre: 13 February to 5 March 2023
Final interviews: 8 March to 28 March 2023
Investments programme
As an independent global charity, we fund our grants and other activities from a £38 billion investment portfolio.
As a member of Wellcome’s Investments Team, you’ll undertake investment analysis, learn about financial markets, develop your investment judgment, and understand how our long-term philosophy seeks to generate returns to support Wellcome’s mission.
You will have a front-row seat at the team’s weekly Investment Decision Meeting, regularly chaired by our Chief Investment Officer, where all the key portfolio decisions are debated and made. Through this, and through interacting with other members of the team, you will get substantial exposure to financial markets and the various asset classes in which Wellcome invests.
Our programme suits people who can think on their feet, enjoy being challenged and are motivated to try new things and contribute ideas.
Soon after joining the team, you will map out a personal development plan with your manager. This plan will set out your specific training and development goals, to be obtained both through experience and through relevant training from internal and external providers.
Suggested areas of training include, but are not limited to, the below:
- Investment Management Certificate (IMC) qualification
- financial analysis and modelling
- public speaking and presentation skills
- debating and negotiation skills.
Graduates benefit hugely from being a part of the Investments Team weekly meeting from day one, where all the most important decisions about the portfolio are discussed and debated.
There are three things that set the Wellcome investments graduate scheme apart: fascinating projects across a broad range of sectors and asset classes; learning to think in the truly long term; and the fact that all this varied, exciting work is contributing to an incredible mission. That is why I was thrilled to be offered a full-time role.
Soon after joining you will also be assigned a mentor to help you navigate your career development and make the most out of your time at Wellcome.
The salary is £35,000 in the first year.
Investments programme key dates
Applications open: 19 September to 30 October 2022
Open evening: register to attend the event on 11 October 2022
Video interviews: week commencing 21 November 2022
Final interviews: 15 December 2022
Please note that the dates above are only acting as a guideline and may change.
Who can apply
To apply to the general programme or the investments programme, you must:
- have an undergraduate or Master's degree (2:2 or above)
- have graduated between 2021 and 2023
- be available from 6 September 2023
- have the right to work in the UK.
We are looking for individuals whose values, beliefs and attitude are aligned to those of Wellcome and are demonstrated in their behaviour.
- Working with others: The ability to relate to co-workers, inspire others to participate, and mitigate conflict with co-workers.
- Analytical and research skills: The ability to assess a situation, seek multiple perspectives, gather information and identify key issues that need to be addressed.
- Communicating with clarity and confidence: The ability to write, speak and present effectively and facilitate communication.
- Creativity and innovation: The ability to identify and create novel approaches to generate solutions.
- Flexibility and ability to cope with change and ambiguity: The ability to manage multiple assignments and tasks and adapt to changing conditions and work assignments.
- Project management, planning and organising: The ability to plan and organise oneself and others to deliver work and prevent future problems.
- Initiative, decision making and judgement: The ability to make timely, informed decisions that consider the facts, goals, constraints and risks.
Adjustments for applicants
No one should face barriers when applying to work at Wellcome. We’re keen to make sure our application process is accessible to everyone. This includes making adjustments for people who have a disability or long-term condition.
Email Silver Chida, Early Careers Manager, at s.chida@wellcome.org to find out how we can support you.
How to apply
Complete an online application form – you’ll be asked to answer a series of scenario-based questions.
Please note, that our application process is anonymised. So please ensure you fill out all the required fields, as they will be collected for use later in the process. We do not accept CVs as part of the application process.
- Complete the online application form for the general graduate development programme.
- Complete the online application form for the investments programme. You can also register to attend our in-person open evening on Tuesday 11th October which will provide an introduction to our graduate investments programme.
If your initial application is successful, you will be invited to participate in a video submission answering competency-based questions. You will be sent the relevant information including a link which will contain instructions on how to complete and submit the video interview via email.
If you’re successful at the video interview stage, you will be invited to an assessment day which will be held at our office in Euston, London. This will be a full day which will consist of a series of exercises that reflect the types of activities you would experience in the role. It’s also a great opportunity to see where we work and meet some of our current employees to talk about their experiences.
Following the assessment centre, you will be invited to the final interview where we will use this opportunity to learn more about you, you can also use this time to ask any questions, and learn more about Wellcome and who we are.
Following the final interview stage, you will find out if you have been successful or not – we provide feedback to all candidates that make it to this final stage.
Working at Wellcome
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I'd say the best thing about working at Wellcome is just how friendly and open everyone here has been at sharing what they do here, and helping you to know how to engage with their work as well.
The most surprising thing for me about working at Wellcome is how much I've developed in the past year, and how my interests have changed compared to how I thought they might lie at the start of the scheme. I started working Wellcome Collection, but I found I really enjoyed all the roles across the Trust.
So for me, the best thing about working Wellcome is that you have a really good balance of working in a really big organisation that is really well known around the world, and so it gives you a lot of kudos when you're going out and interacting with people outside of Wellcome. But at the same time, it doesn't feel like a big organisation where no one cares about you as an individua. It feels like somewhere where you can genuinely feel part of a community and there's a lot of cross talk between different departments here. It doesn't feel alienated or isolating in any way, even though there's a lot of people working under the same roof.
What has surprised me about working at Wellcome, is the difference and kind of working practice and culture between teams, which you really get to understand when you're a graduate and you kind of move from rotation to rotation to those teams. Different divisions can work in very different ways and look for very different things in their kind of day-to-day practices, basically, and that's been really interesting to get an understanding of.
So, one of the best things that I absolutely love about working at Wellcome is the opportunity to kind of get involved with lots of things kind of outside of your day to day job. There's so many kinds of social committees sports committees to get involved with. I've started on the Wellies committee this year which is Wellcome’s own kind of sports and social committee, and there's the opportunity to kind of run events and to kind of organize competitions and just meet lots of different staff from all over the Trust, which is brilliant.
There are a lot of great things about working at Wellcome, but one of the really nice extra things that we have are a lot of great benefits. So, for example, we have a free gym in the building which is really great for keeping healthy and keeping good mental health as well. We also have some really great subsidised delicious food available and there are a lot of discounts available through our benefits portal, for example eateries and cinema, which is also great.
What the grads say
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So, my top tip for the application process is to really prepare well. I actually think preparation really pays off and so, for example, if you're preparing for a video interview or an assessment day or even preparing to write your application form, it's a really good idea to do some solid research on Wellcome find out a little bit more about what they do. What sort of activities they're involved with at the moment. What their priorities are. You can do this through a lot of different ways. We have a great website, but it also might find it useful to attend career's events and speak to people who work here or to attend webinars.
My top tips for application process would be to be explicit and really use those key skills that are listed and also to not be afraid in showing your enthusiasm and by making your application unique to you and genuinely showing your interest in Wellcome.
So, one of my top tips for the application process is to really think about why this scheme suits you right now. Because it's the opportunity to try out lots of different things, you're kind of not being trained just for one particular role, it's the opportunity to kind of like experiment with different activities. So, you have to really think about why is that important to you. Why does the structure of the scheme really work for you?
When you are doing your application my top tips for the application process would be to be as self-reflective and self-aware as possible when answering our questions for the Graduate Development Scheme at Wellcome. We’re really keen to hear what you'd like to achieve over the two years with us, as well as your strengths.
One of my top tips for the application process would be to make it perhaps as unique as possible. I think that something I drew on was kind of unique experiences I've had through work experience I've done in the past or kind of a project that I did at school that kind of stood out from other things in my life. I think that kind of gives you a bit of an edge and it kind of shows that you are doing things outside of just schoolwork that's on the curriculum as it were. So, yeah, I would definitely recommend picking unique things about yourself that really make you stand out against other applicants.
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