2026 UK Civil Engineering Industrial Placement - Energy in Cardiff

At Mott MacDonald, we believe in nurturing potential and creating space for people to thrive. Our Industrial Placement Programme is designed for curious and proactive students who are ready to explore, grow, and make a meaningful impact. Whether you're taking a year out from university or stepping into the world of work before pursuing postgraduate study, this is your opportunity to gain hands-on experience in one of our diverse and innovative teams.

What You Can Expect

Our placements are as unique as you are. You’ll work alongside graduates, experienced professionals, and fellow students — learning from a variety of perspectives while immersing yourself in our inclusive culture and values. From day one, you’ll be encouraged to contribute to real projects that matter. We don’t follow a rigid structure — and that’s intentional. We want you to take ownership of your journey. The more you engage, ask questions, and get involved, the more you’ll gain.

The Opportunity

This placement sits within the Energy sector, Transmission and Distribution. We are looking for aspiring Civil Engineers to join the team for a 12 month placement, playing a key role in designing and delivering the infrastructure that powers the UK’s transition to Net Zero. With the growing demand for renewable energy, your work will help ensure clean energy reaches homes, businesses, and even international markets through interconnectors to Europe.

Candidate Specification

To join us for an industrial placement you must currently be enrolled on a degree course at university, however, if you are graduating from your current degree in 2026 with no plans to enrol onto a further course then we would encourage you to explore our graduate opportunities. We’re looking for students who have the following characteristics and are studying towards a Civil/Structural Engineering degree:

• Proactively takes initiative to complete tasks efficiently and independently.
• Communicates effectively and clearly with clients and colleagues.
• Delivers high quality written work with strong attention to detail and clarity.
• Demonstrates a structured and analytical approach to problem solving.

About Our Placements

We’re looking for highly motivated students who are passionate about learning from our industry experts. You’ll be given the opportunity to gain invaluable experience working on some of the exciting projects that are helping to shape tomorrow’s world. We understand that to put your learning into practice it’s important that you’re given an accurate insight into our innovative industry. With enough work placement experience under your belt you can get just that. Think of it as a worthwhile investment towards your future career.

We place a lot of emphasis on giving you a realistic view of our world, so you can decide if it’s the industry you want to work in. Many of the employees that we recruit for our graduate schemes are students that have made an impression during their placements with us, so remember, this could be the start of a promising career for you with Mott MacDonald. We are a living wage employer, so we offer a great hourly rate for your placement with us.

Our social side

Being part of Mott MacDonald means more than just work, there’s a huge range of fun and exciting things that you can get involved in. From the moment you join us, you’ll have the opportunity to expand your social and professional network, whether it’s meeting other placement students and graduates or joining forces with other members of staff from around the company at our annual sports day. Each of our offices has a sports and social committee which will give you the chance to be part of a variety of sports, social and charity events. We’re committed to promoting a strong culture of social responsibility and encourage our staff to play active roles in the local community. It’s worth noting that sports and social committees tend to vary from office to office, so as well as getting involved in what’s already on offer, don’t be afraid to suggest new events or initiatives that you think could be a great addition.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

We put equality, diversity and inclusion at the heart of our business, seeking to promote fair employment procedures and practices to ensure equal opportunities for all. We encourage individual expression in our workplace and are committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels they have the opportunity to contribute.

Agile Working

At Mott MacDonald, we believe it makes business sense for you and your manager to choose how you can work most effectively to meet your client, team and personal commitments. We embrace agility, flexibility and trust.

More About Mott MacDonald

We’re a global engineering, management and development consultancy. Our purpose is to improve society by considering social outcomes in everything we do, relentlessly focusing on excellence and digital innovation, transforming our clients’ businesses, our communities and employee opportunities. A fundamental part of this is respecting each person’s differences and striving to meet their needs.