Academy Engineer Apprentice - Level 6 Level Apprenticeship - Mechatronic Engineering

Location:

Belfast, United Kingdom

Thales is a global technology leader with more than 83,000 employees on five continents. With over 7,500 people in the UK, operating across defence, space, aerospace, and digital security, we help build a future we can all trust. Thales supports the security and stability of our nation by providing extraordinary technology to our customers, as well as delivering social value to the UK with our products and services.

Start Date: 6 September 2027

Salary: £24,000 per annum

Employee type: Permanent

Location: Belfast

Working

Schedule:

Monday – Thursday , Friday  (flexible working available)

Turn your curiosity into a career. If you're passionate about engineering, eager to learn, and looking for an apprenticeship that combines academic study with exciting on-the-job experience, we'd love to hear from you. Our Mechatronics apprenticeship will let you explore different types of engineering before you make an informed decision to specialise in relevant disciple of engineering.

• Earn a salary while studying for your apprenticeship
• Gain hands‑on experience in a real engineering environment
• Receive job‑specific training and development
• Achieve a recognised engineering qualification
• Tuition fees for approved training providers are fully covered
• Secure a permanent role from the start of your apprenticeship

As an Engineering Apprentice, you’ll be learning and building real mechatronic engineering skills
- This will help you can grow into a confident, positive, and flexible engineer. You’ll develop a strong technical base and get the chance to work on challenging engineering problems as part of a supportive team.

Mechatronics is where mechanical engineering, electronics, and software come together - so you’ll learn how to think through design, how to create solutions, and how technology helps make systems work automatically.

In this role, you’ll help the team deliver solutions to meet deadlines, quality expectations, and budget. You’ll learn how good engineering decisions are made - balancing performance, cost, and manufacturability all while working with different parts of the business.

• Build practical, transferable engineering skills: you won’t just learn theory - you’ll learn how designs are made ready for real‑world production.
• Become more confident in engineering problem‑solving: you’ll work with guidance, but you’ll also learn how to break down challenges and find solutions.
• Understand how engineering decisions are made: you’ll see how cost, quality, and performance trade‑offs come into the design process.
• Learn through teamwork: you’ll collaborate with people from different disciplines and begin building professional communication skills.

Throughout the apprenticeship, you will gain experience and knowledge in:

• How our business works, especially across Engineering, including software, hardware, and systems
• Engineering and the wider business, together - you’ll be exposed to other functions outside Engineering, so you fully understand how we’re set up and how decisions get made
• Learning from the people who make it all happen - you’ll work with key stakeholders across the business, alongside experienced, long‑tenured experts and our leadership teams
• Building your network - you’ll join a large community of future talent (including apprentices, graduates, and interns), helping you grow through connections and shared learning
• Growing your capability through rotation - you’ll develop through a designed pathway with internal rotational programmes, ensuring you get the right experience in the right teams