2026 UK Graduate Rail Engineering Manager Career Path: Transport

Please note you may only submit one application for our graduate opportunities. Once submitted, changes or new applications cannot be made — unless new vacancies open in the new year.  

To avoid missing out on your preferred role, we recommend applying as early as possible, as positions will close once filled. 

Turn your ambition into action—apply now and shape your future with us.  

Job Description

Are you ready to launch your career in a role where your ideas are valued, your growth is championed, and your work helps connect communities? Join us as a Graduate Track Engineer and help design, deliver, and maintain the rail infrastructure that powers progress and shapes a more sustainable world. 

What You’ll Do:

• Innovate & Collaborate: Work alongside experienced engineers to design, inspect, and maintain railway track systems, ensuring safety, reliability, and sustainability across every project. 

• Grow & Achieve: Access structured training, mentorship, and clear pathways for professional development—including support towards chartership and specialist skills. Your achievements will be recognised and celebrated. 

• Make an Impact: Contribute to projects that modernise rail networks, improve passenger journeys, and drive positive change for society and the environment. 

Track Engineering encompasses a diverse skillset to ensure we provide a track asset that meet key performance criteria, including desired train speeds/journey times and ensuring ride quality for passengers. As a Track Engineer you will be involved in a wide range of activities including, but not limited to, track alignment design, gauging assessments, journey time evaluations, small project management/design management roles, Track-Ex (rail wear modelling), and buffer stop risk assessments. 

Your role will include developing track alignment designs at both feasibility and detailed design stages for clients such as Network Rail, East West Rail, and contractors involved in smaller design-and-build projects. Track alignment design includes horizontal, vertical and cant alignments, designed using survey data and presented on plan and profile drawings. In some cases, to support track alignment design, a gauging assessment is required to evaluate the clearances between adjacent tracks and/or structures, both existing and proposed, such as a new bridge design. These assessments are carried out using specialist software, with track alignment as a typical input. 

As part of the Rail Division, you will also have the opportunity to rotate into other disciplines, typically two six-month placements, before returning to Track to complete your graduate scheme. Other disciplines include Stations & Civils, Signalling & Operations, Overhead Contact Systems, Rolling Stock and more, offering a well-rounded foundation in railway engineering.

We have opportunities in the following locations: Croydon,Manchester, and York.

Candidate Specification

At Mott MacDonald, we’re looking for curious, motivated graduates who want to make a real difference.  Join our purpose-driven teams where your ideas matter, your growth is supported, and your work enhances the world we live in.  

To be eligible for this opportunity, you will have less than 12 months’ relevant experience (excluding placements) and have a Master’s degree (obtained no earlier than 2024) or expected to achieve one, in one of the following degree disciplines:  

•  Civil engineering 

• Mechanical engineering 

In your application, you should aim to demonstrate your genuine interest in both the opportunity and in joining Mott MacDonald. You can do this by highlighting any relevant experience or interests—such as modules you've studied, previous work experience, or any research you've undertaken about our company, values, and projects. 

We personally review every completed application we receive as our selection process is entirely human led – we do not use AI tools and kindly expect you not to either. We want you to answer each application question with authenticity so we can get to know the real you. Joining us as a graduate is your opportunity to shape your own story 

We are looking for graduates with the following strengths: 

• 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

• Knowledge of current affairs and regulation relating to rail transport 

• Well-rounded knowledge on wider environmental issues  

• Familiarity with data management, analytics and digital technologies  

• Understanding of rail infrastructure and the transport sector  

As we want the best people for the role, we support flexible working.  Please ask us at interview stage about any flexibility you may need. 

Mott MacDonald Ltd. are not currently offering sponsorship to candidates under the Skilled Worker visa route in the UK. This decision is as a consequence of the changes made to the Skilled Worker route by the UK Government in April 2024.  

Our ethos is to develop, train and retain our graduates and therefore we are looking for a long-term relationship with our graduates. For this reason, we cannot accept applications from candidates who would be working under the Graduate visa route or other time-limited visas, (irrespective of visa duration), due to their temporary nature and the requirement for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route in future. 

We continue to welcome applications from candidates who are eligible for alternative immigration routes in the UK, that do not require sponsorship as a Skilled Worker now or in the future. 

About your development

A graduate position should be more than just a job. We know this and so do you. That’s why, with our graduate roles, we aim to give you the experience and technical knowledge you need to progress your career. 

From the moment you join us, you’ll receive the training you need. You will be assigned a chartered mentor, who will guide you to meet the objectives of your professional training agreement. We’ll support you on your journey to gaining chartered status with your chosen institution. 

Accelerating your Future – our early careers development programme

Mott Macdonald will support the development of technical and practical skills like presentation and report writing skills, and data analysis, alongside your personal development.