We offer some additional opportunities to gain work experience at the Environment Agency. See below for more ways to gain experience…  

Other Opportunities available: 

QUEST (Queen’s Jubilee Scholarship Trust) 

QUEST has been established to encourage young people to pursue careers into civil engineering, with educational support payments and paid summer placement opportunities. 

The scheme is designed to support and encourage you on your journey to becoming a professionally qualified civil engineer. 

You will be a QUEST scholar for the duration of your degree course and will undertake paid placements with the Environment Agency for 8 weeks, for each summer between university years, with the option of then joining our Graduate Training Scheme. 

Eligibility: 

You need to be starting a full-time accredited civil engineering undergraduate degree at a UK university in September/October 2025 and have predicted A-level grades of ABB or higher. 

Preferable subjects are maths and science, or design-based subjects. To check if your course is accredited visit the JBM website. 

What will you experience?  

During your 8 week summer placements, you will be able to experience engineering activities undertaken at the Environment Agency first hand, being able to attend site visits, and contribute to work that directly affects our asset base and flood risk management. You will be part of a team local to you within flood risk management and be made to feel comfortable and confident with the work they do, as well as getting further exposure to the wider organisation and other teams. 

You will be assigned a technical mentor who will help you as you embark on the start of your engineering career to becoming professionally qualified. They will support you as you start to provide evidence for Initial Professional Development (IPD) online, guide you as to the work that will help you achieve this, advise the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) sessions that will be of use to you, and encourage you throughout your time with us. 

Benefits of schemes: 

• Eligible for up to £8,000 over the course of your university study 
• Undertake a paid placement with the Environment Agency for 8 weeks each summer between your university years.  
• Once you satisfactorily complete your degree course at university, and your summer work placements at the Environment Agency, you may be eligible for a position on our Engineering Graduate Training Scheme. 

Example career pathway in organisation: 

• Engineering Graduate Training Scheme 
• Deputy Catchment Engineer 
• Catchment Engineer 

Specific recruitment information: 

For further information about QUEST and how to apply, please visit the ICE website at: QUEST scholarships | Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) 

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Work experience 

We have partnered with Springpod, a virtual (online) work experience provider, to create ‘Environment Agency Opportunities – Your Environment, Your Career’, a virtual work experience programme that will give you an insight into:

• the amazing work of our organisation
• some of the exciting and diverse careers available in flood and coastal risk management (FCRM)
• opportunities for individuals at the start of their career
• what it’s like to work at the Environment Agency

This on-demand programme is accessible on all devices with a browser. The programme includes 8 modules of content designed for 13–18-year-olds (although there is no upper age limit). You will engage with inspirational content, pre-recorded speaker sessions, quizzes and tasks to develop your understanding of the Environment Agency and specifically the Flood and Coastal Risk Management (FCRM) part of the organisation.

Successful completion of the online programme will result in a certificate of completion that can be added to your CV or personal statement and is recognised by UCAS.  

Visit the Springpod website to find out more about the content of the programme, including setting yourself up with an account and applying to undertake ‘Environment Agency Opportunities – Your Environment, Your Career’.

Environment Agency Opportunities – Your Environment, Your Career | Springpod

We also offer work experience placements for over 16s. These are arranged on a local basis and are not advertised on our jobs pages.  

If you’re interested, have a look at your local office location here Environment Agency area and region operational locations – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) and get in touch to see if there are any opportunities in your local area. Contact general enquiries, details here Environment Agency – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)