GovWire

At Dstl, graduates, students and apprentices make real contributions to our projects and the future of our organisation. We take great pride in recruiting talented and enthusiastic young people each year.

We have exciting projects and assignments that we cant wait to get you involved in. Were confident that when you join Dstl youll help us see things through a different lens and bring innovate solutions to our challenges.

Dstl is recruiting

Our purpose

Dstls purpose is simple, but powerful: to provide the science inside UK defence and security, and help protect our nation.

We can tell you the hows and whys when we speak to you, but ultimately, thats our goal and we are proud of who we are and what we do.

We provide world-class expertise and cutting edge science and technology to the UK, and for us to continue doing this, we need to bring in more talented individuals along the way. Thats where you come in.

Our values

At Dstl we value innovation, collaboration and impact. Those 3 words not only describe how we work, but also our people and culture. These values are embedded into our organisation and are reflected in the fantastic work we do.

We look for people who can demonstrate these values and apply them to our unique challenges at Dstl. So, if you want to start your career - or get a glimpse of work - at an organisation that has a truly special purpose, then wed love to hear from you.

Why choose Dstl

We are a specialist organisation that harnesses advanced science and technology to protect our nation. With a workforce of nearly 5,000 permanent employees, we work shoulder-to-shoulder to ensure the safety of the UK.

The work we do is fascinating and unique. We provide the UK government with specialist science and technology research, advice and analysis. Unsurprisingly, the work we do is sensitive and often operationally critical, with the potential to save many lives.

We have a fantastic organisational culture, where we collaborate and support each other. Our people feel comfortable bringing their whole and unique selves to work and we are passionate about our people. We also have a number of employee support network groups you can become involved in, celebrating diversity within our workforce, from LGBTQ+ to neurodiversities.

Life at Dstl

We look forward to welcoming you to Dstl on one of our Early Career programmes. Whether youre thinking of joining us temporarily on one of our placement schemes, or permanently on a graduate programme, were committed to creating an environment that enables your personal and professional growth.

Early careers community

Every year we bring in bright, excited and enthusiastic cohorts of students and graduates. So youre not alone. Youll be immersed into a community of like-minded individuals, where you can share experiences, knowledge and ideas, to help us shape our future.

Your development is our objective

We recruit people who embody our values and demonstrate the potential to drive our organisation forward. We invest in you, because we know you will add value straight away and as you progress into a future star at Dstl. You have the education, enthusiasm and potential and we have the culture, leaders and opportunities the perfect combination.

With specific developmental plans, mentoring programmes and buddy-systems, our learning and development team work passionately to help you unlock your full potential.

But thats not all. The leaders you work with will involve you in truly fascinating and unique projects. Youll be able to apply your theoretical and educational understanding, to real-life jobs, with real-life impacts.

Ultimately, we value and understand the importance of creating an environment that sets you up for a fantastic and rewarding career.

Find out more about the benefits of working for us, and how we make Dstl a place where everyone can thrive, succeed and achieve their ambitions.

Our recruits in their own words

My career in Dstl

Hear from some more of our employees about their career paths and experiences working at Dstl:

• Emily, working in the world of fast jets
• From art to engineering
• Scientist Louise, flying high in her scientific career
• Dstls outstanding apprentice
• Omar, doing cool science in electro-optic countermeasures
• Junyard, principal space scientist

Read more stories from the people inside Dstl.