Early Careers
Early, flexible, what’s-right-for-you careers
From school leavers to undergrads to postgrads to career changers – we’ve got you.
We know that life isn’t linear, so we’re flexible. Whether you’re ready to start your career or change its course, we’ll help you explore your options. If you’re thinking of trying something new, like a different area or specialism, we’ll do our best to make it happen.
But – and it’s really important – you’ve got to be committed. You have to want to improve, learn, and develop with us, so that we can continue to best support our clients.
Ready to realise your potential? Let’s go.
Develop your way, our way
You can feel it here. The support, the understanding. Just how committed we are to you and your career, personally as well as professionally.
When you join us, we’ll sit down and work out a training and development programme that works for you and what you want to achieve.
From there on in, it’s delivering the best work for our clients. With real responsibility and accountability. Of course, there’ll be demands and deadlines, but you’ll have our full support and a dedicated team alongside you.
We’re all here to get you where you want to be.
School Leavers
You’ve completed your high school education and want to keep on learning, but you want to be earning too. Working towards a professional qualification, and taking home a full-time salary, you’ll be involved in real client work with knowledgeable, supportive colleagues.
If you’re looking to become a Chartered Accountant, you will study towards the AAT (Association of Accounting Technicians) before moving on to complete the ACA (ICAEW – Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales), CA (ICAS – Institute of Chartered Accountants for Scotland) or ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) , across four to five years.
If you’re leaning towards tax, it’s ATT (Association of Taxation Technicians) and CTA (Chartered Institute of Taxation). If Payroll is of interest, we do also offer a very small number of roles studying towards the Level 3 and 5 Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals.
Head over to our job listings to find out more about the exact qualifications we have on offer.
To join a school leaver programme, you’ll need:
• A minimum of 120 UCAS points from your top 3 A Levels (or equivalent), excluding General Studies and AS Levels.
• A minimum of B (or 6) in GCSE Maths and English Language (or equivalent).
More about school leaver programmes
Graduates
If you want to become a fully qualified Chartered Accountant or Tax Adviser, our three-year training contracts are designed to help you do just that.
There’s a range of qualifications on offer, including ACA (ICAEW – Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales), CA (ICAS – Institute of Chartered Accountants for Scotland) and ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) which take around three years to complete for those looking to become a Chartered Accountant.
If you want to focus on tax, you can study towards the ACA/CTA Joint Progamme or ATT/CTA Tax Pathway, depending on the exact role.
Our live jobs will explain everything you need to know and the exact qualifications we offer.
To join us as a graduate, you’ll need:
• 2:1 degree (expected or obtained) in any discipline,
• A minimum of 120 UCAS points from your top 3 A Levels (or equivalent), excluding General Studies and AS Levels.
• A minimum of B (or 6) in GCSE Maths and English Language (or equivalent).
More about graduate training contracts
Summer internships and Placements
Get an on-the-ground feel for working life at Saffery whilst gaining vital work experience in accounts, audit or tax. We’ll introduce you to the basic principles of accounting and tax.
While you’re with us, you’ll also have a mentor who’ll support you and give you regular feedback. And if you enjoy your time with us, and we all feel that we’re right for each other, your placement could turn into an immediate job offer for a training contract once you’ve finished uni.
To join us for a summer internship or placement, you’ll need:
• 2:1 degree (expected),
• A minimum of 120 UCAS points from your top 3 A Levels (or equivalent), excluding General Studies and AS Levels.
• A minimum of B (or 6) in GCSE Maths and English Language (or equivalent).
Applications for our Summer Internship and Placement programmes for 2026 have now opened!
More about internships and placements
Make a name for yourself
You’re never a number at Saffery. You’re you. And we care about you personally, not just professionally. You’re recognised and rewarded for everything you do, and everything you bring.
As well as being committed to your training and development, with full support for your professional qualifications and flexible study leave, we go all in with our rewards and benefits too.
- A 35-hour working week with flexibility around our core hours of 10am-4pm,
- Pre-approved paid overtime, time off in lieu or bonus payments for those busy periods (role dependent),
- Opportunity to join our Profit-Sharing Plan that enables you share in the firm’s profits,
- 25 days’ holiday – which increases in line with length of service, and
- You can also buy or sell up to five days’ holiday a year.
