2026 Diversity Summer Internship – London or Newcastle

The NAO is looking for penultimate year undergraduate students interested in starting their career in Accounting! You will gain an understanding of NAO’s key work areas - Financial Audit and Value for Money (VfM). If you would like to get involved in a range of interesting projects and make a difference, apply today!

Who are we? The NAO is the UK’s independent public spending watchdog. We are an independent public body, and our vital audit work adds value to the government by supporting its drive to improve the delivery of public services to millions of people every day. The NAO boasts an impressive client portfolio including high-profile government departments, the NHS and BBC and we collaborate with clients to help improve crucial public services, which affect each and every one of us!

Working location and remuneration: The internship programme will run for six weeks, from 15th June to 24th July, and will be based in either our London or Newcastle office. This is an in-person internship, so you must be available for the full duration of the programme and able to work from one of our offices. You will receive a competitive pro-rated salary of £27,000 (London) or £25,000 (Newcastle).

Responsibilities: What is the role?

• You will have the opportunity to get involved in a range of interesting projects that will allow you to see the importance of the work the NAO completes.
• You will work with different colleagues, helping you to expand your professional network and shadow auditors in their day-to-day work.
• Tasks you will work on include undertaking crucial research and fieldwork for NAO’s audits and investigations.
• You will have the opportunity to attend a range of exciting training courses about the government, assurance and the role of Parliament.

Skills required: We look for individuals who can:

• Analyse data to draw sound conclusions
• Demonstrate sound judgement
• Communicate effectively with others
• Demonstrate enthusiasm, initiative, and drive
• Build and maintain effective team relationships
• Build and maintain key client relationships
• Plan and organise workload to deliver high quality work to deadline
• Understand the bigger picture

Application stages:

1. Initial application with personal details
2. Online numerical test
3. Written competency questions
4. Telephone interview

Educational requirements: To join our Summer Internship programme:

• You must be in your penultimate year of university
• You must be on track to achieve at least a 2.1 degree in any subject.
• You must have achieved a minimum of UCAS points (or based on the pre-September UCAS tariff point system) or equivalent from your top 3 A Levels, not including General Studies.
• If you have UCAS points (or based on the former UCAS tariff point system), you may still be eligible to apply as your application will be reviewed in the context of your socio-economic background.
• You must be interested in Financial Audit although you’ll have the opportunity to get involved with Value For Money (VfM) work.

Diversity requirements: This is a diversity work experience programme so applicants must be from one or more of the following characteristics:

• lower socio-economic background
• black heritage background
• female

Nationality Requirements:

• UK Nationals
• Nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• Nationals from the EU, EEA or Switzerland with (or eligible for) status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)

The NAO is unable to sponsor work visas. If you have any questions regarding nationality eligibility, please contact us.

Please note that participation in the Summer Internship Programme does not guarantee progression to an assessment centre or a place on the NAO Trainee Accountancy Programme. Any future applications will be considered independently and must meet the relevant eligibility and right-to-work requirements at the time of application. Candidates applying to the NAO Trainee Accountancy Programme must hold valid right-to-work documentation for the full three-year duration of the programme.

If you need any reasonable adjustments during the process, please contact our team so we can discuss how best to accommodate your requirements.

Application Deadline: The application deadline is 27th February (23:59) but we reserve the right to close the role early if we receive a high level of interest. Please note, there may be a delay between completing an assessment stage and receiving an outcome, as applications are reviewed once recruitment has closed.