2026 Academy Test Engineer in Leeds

Audacia is an award-winning technology consultancy specialising in software engineering, data, AI and cloud services. We have established a reputation as thought-leaders and innovators working as a trusted partner to deliver complex large-scale technology solutions, with clients including global agriculture companies, regulatory bodies, multinational energy providers, and international automotive manufacturers.

We’re looking for intelligent and driven individuals to join our Academy programme in Spring 2026, providing a solid learning foundation to get into software development or testing. We hire talented people based on their potential rather than their experience. Our teams have a variety of backgrounds, but all share curiosity and analytical thinking, and love to solve complex problems.

You’ll be working in an open office, with a culture focused on collaboration, transparency and working as a single team, with each other and with clients. You’ll benefit from a structured 8-week training programme, delivered by our senior technical staff, consisting of both seminar-led and hands-on development or testing. In addition, you’ll be assigned a mentor to guide and support you throughout the programme, equipping you with the knowledge, technical skills and experience to reach your full potential.

At the end of your training programme, you’ll be using the latest tools, technologies and platforms to build and test intuitive and scalable solutions for a range of clients across multiple industries. Our Academy roles aren’t based on fixed term programmes. You’re here for the long run, if you want to be. As you progress through your career at Audacia, you’ll have opportunities to move into different roles that suit your abilities and interests. You’ll be part of a community here, with people who are passionate about technology and like to engage inside and outside of work. You’ll normally find us in the evenings socialising, playing board games, or having a game of badminton.

Based in the heart of Leeds, we offer a hybrid, flexible working model - giving our team the freedom to collaborate in the office two days a week while enjoying the balance of working remotely.

• 25 days holiday + bank holidays
• Private health cover
• Pension matching up to 6%
• Dedicated career coach
• Cycle to work scheme
• Discretionary annual bonus
• Weekly breakfast sandwiches

Programme: As a tester, your training sessions will cover topics from programming with C# and TypeScript, unit testing and test-driven development, to UI and API automated testing – overall, you’ll be working together as a team, with our Academy developers and testers, to build and test a functional project.

What you’ll learn:

• Fundamentals of Testing – An introduction to testing as a function, including why software fails and how bugs occur, to understanding testing principles, processes, levels and techniques.
• Automated Testing – Covering both UI automated testing and API automated testing, you’ll benefit from practical sessions to install and run tools, setting up tests using our framework.
• Performance Testing – An introduction to testing the durability of an application and its infrastructure, learning how to test the speed, responsiveness and stability of a system.
• Security Testing – An introduction to testing the security of an application, including how to run security scans, what kind of vulnerabilities can be reported, and how to manage those vulnerabilities effectively.
• Programming with TypeScript – Learn the TypeScript programming language as an introduction to fundamental programming concepts, such as conditional logic, loops and how to structure programs into functions and classes.

What we look for:

• A passion for problem solving, thriving on providing solutions to complex challenges.
• An ability to collaborate and work effectively with peers, as part of a single team.
• Self-motivated, driven and proactive people with an eagerness to learn and develop, striving to improve knowledge and abilities.
• An ability to work independently and take ownership of work assigned to you.
• Good verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to clearly articulate your thoughts, ideas and work.
• A willingness to challenge and ask questions in order to continuously improve.

What previous cohorts said:

• “Audacia's Academy programme has taught me so much. I was very nervous about starting my career in the tech industry, however all of nerves disappeared on the first day. Audacia was so welcoming and friendly. I really liked the Academy due to how much support you received to the very end. Every week I had a catch-up with my mentor and the Academy manager which was great to ask questions and receive feedback. If you were ever stuck on a problem, someone was always there to help.”
• “The whole process of the Academy was both highly educational and very enjoyable. We were taught from the complete fundamentals up to how systems work in the cloud. The teachers made the learning as fun as possible, using themes we all love, while still ensuring they stayed similar to a real software project. We were also taught how to work professionally, and how the different departments of the business come together. Each of us were given a buddy, who was someone more senior outside of the academy, who could help us progress our skills and careers. Each of us had full support every step of the way, it is a fantastic introduction into the world of tech.”
• “The best part of the academy was the community of developers we had access to. Alongside my dev lead, I learnt so much from the academy devs while pair programming, my career coach who I met regularly and the wider Audacia community. This was the biggest contributor to my success after the academy, and made joining projects really easy.”
• “Audacia's academy was fantastic as it gave me a head start into tech. We completed a mock software project which was a great introduction into how everything comes together when delivering software for clients. There was also a good mix of sessions on coding/technical skills and commercial awareness. I completed the academy feeling confident in my ability to work on a live project, and that is thanks to the expert guidance we received throughout.”

Our recruitment process:

• Initial application
• Telephone interview (approx. 30 mins)
• Face-to-face interview (approx. 2hrs 30 mins)

Following the application window, our process normally takes around three weeks, depending on availability. We don’t like to keep you waiting, so we will aim to respond to initial applications as quickly as possible following the deadline. Please speak to us if you require any adjustments for your interview; we do our best to ensure everyone has equal opportunities and will accommodate reasonable requests to create an environment where you can succeed.

When you’ll start: Our 2026 Spring Academy Programme start date depends on candidate availability - please let us know in the application form below.