Together we are Trusted to Serve Scotland.
GraduateProgramme2026 – Accountant
Ready to own your future?At Scottish Water, our graduate programmes empower you to drive change, tacklereal challenges, and shape Scotland’s future. This is more than just a launchpad for your career -it'san opportunity to make a meaningful impact. As part of our team,you’llplay a key role in delivering essential services and infrastructure that help Scotland flourish every day.
You’llbe joining us at a fascinating time, as we transform into a more agile, innovative organisation that delivers outstanding service, providesgreat valuefor money, and works in an environmentally sustainable way that goes beyond Net Zero. Start a careerthat’sbuilt for you, today.
Whatyou’lldo
Over thethree-yearprogramme,you’llrotate through a variety ofplacements, spending time with the Tax and Treasury function, Management Accounts, Capital, Group Reporting and Technical Finance. Each experience willgrowyour knowledge, confidence, and technical skills. With structured training, mentoring, and real-world responsibility,you’lldevelop into a capable, trusted Management Accountant.
Sponsored by Scottish Water, thisprogrammewill alsoseeyou working towards a fully funded accredited qualification in either CIMA, ICAS or ACCA.
You will be working towards anAccountantrole,while beingembedded in our Finance team, supporting the delivery of clear and relevant financial information and analysis to business teams. From day one,you’llhelp teams track, understand, forecast, and effectively control costs.
You’llgain hands-on experience by providing regular and ad-hoc financial reports that helpmonitorand explain operating costs.You’llsupport forward planning and contribute to setting financial performance targets, while also developing new tracking reports and analysis tools to enhance our processes.
You’llalso work closely with stakeholders across the business,capturingand presentingboth financial and non-financial information, and coachingbusiness teams on financial policy, processes, and controls, ensuring best practice is embedded across theorganisation.
At the end of theprogramme,you’llmove into a permanent role as an Accountant, whereyou’llcontinue to make a real impact on Scotland’s water services.
How does the graduateprogrammework?
You’llbe employed on a permanent contract from Day One, with a starting salary of £33,000
There is plenty of support. As well as your day-to-day manager,we’llmatch you up with a mentor who will support and coach you as you go through your programme.
You’llhave access to both structured and informal training designed to equip you with the skills you need now, and in the future.
Whatyou’llneed
You’llhave graduated within the last three years (or be on track to graduate this summer) with a degree inAccountancy, Finance, or a related field.We’relooking for aminimum2:2classification.
You’llneed to be passionate about financial analysis, business partnering, and making a positive impact every day. An understanding of accounting principles andmanagementaccounting techniques is key, as well as a desire to worktowards a professional qualification.You should also be someone who works well with others, takesinitiative, and brings energy and enthusiasm to every challenge.
A valid UK drivinglicenceand regular access to a vehicle may berequired, as some placements will involve travel to sites acrossCentralScotland.
In terms of essential requirements?That’sit.
Buthere’sthe thing: We get thousands of applications for our Graduate roles each year. What makes the best candidates stand out?
Here are a few things we love to see:
1. CVs that tell us more than what grades you earned over the years. Show us whatyou’velearned. What you love. What your aspirations are.
2. Cover letters that tell us whyyou’reinterested in Scottish Water (and in this role)
3. People who use their application to show that they are Bold, Responsible, Inspiring and Caring.
Looking out for you
While the work we do is important,it’snot the only thing that matters.That’swhy we make sure you have everything you need to find a good work-life balance.
You’llget plenty of time to recharge with 38 days of holiday every year (including public holidays). And you can even buy five more if you need a little extra time. You can also take paid time off to volunteer in your community.
When it comes to major life events we have family-friendly policies around adoption, maternity, and parental leave. And for the everyday? We embrace flexible working andoperateon a ‘Balanced Hybrid’ approach, meaning we encourage people to spend half of their time in a Scottish Water location.
For your future,there’sour pension (the ‘know-what-you’ll-get-when-you-retire’ kind), as well as life assurance.
As for some nice extras? You can expect an annual company bonus. Not to mention access to SW Splash – handy rewards that can save you money on holidays, bills, and shopping.
What happens next?
4. The closing date for applications is11:59pm onSunday 14thDecember.
5. Assessment activity will kick off in on Friday 19thDecember with some surprisingly fun (no, really!) online testing. You can read more about the full application process here:
6. Final face-to-face interviews willcommenceat the end of January, finishing on February 13th. Where you can give us a good grilling too.
7. If you accept a place on the programme,you’llgo through some pre-employment screening during the Spring, including a criminal record check.
8. All our new Graduates will start together in September, with a comprehensive induction event to set you up for success from day one.You’lllearn more about the organisation, meet our leaders, visit some of our operational sites, start making friends, and have a lot of fun.
A few final things worth knowing…
Research shows that some people avoid applying for jobs unless they can meet every single criteria. If you’re interested in this job, but don’t tick all the boxes, apply anyway! We hardly ever hire people who can do every part of a job from Day One. Everyone has a learning curve. So don’t rule yourself out!
Let us know if there are any changes we can make to our recruitment process to help you perform at your best. Lots of our people have disabilities or neurodiverse conditions (including some of our recruiters!). We're also aware that some people might be experiencing temporary challenges because of life events, like menopause. We’re very used to making adjustments, so please don’t be afraid to ask.
As part of our commitment to developing a flourishing Scotland, it’s important that all our employees are Scottish taxpayers. If you join us, your home address will need to be in Scotland. If you don’t already live here, you'll need to commit to moving here within your first three months.
Please note, Scottish Water takes the safety, health and wellbeing of our employees, colleagues and customers very seriously and as such you may be subject to Drug & Alcohol testing in line with our policy.
Finally (finally!), candidates who haven’t submitted an application in the last 12 months will have their records removed from our recruitment database. You won’t need to do anything. Your data will be automatically deleted.