Mechanical Engineering Apprentice Graduate Level Apprenticeship, Engineering Design

Position: 2026 Mechanical Engineering Apprentice Graduate Level Apprenticeship, Engineering for Design an[...]

Location:

Glasgow, United Kingdom

Thales 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…