Costain Group
Graduate Project Manager 2027 - SPA

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Role of the Project Manager
The role of the Project Manager is dynamic and stimulating. As a Graduate Project Manager, you will assist the Project Manager and other members of the project team in planning, executing, and closing change initiatives, bids and business development activities, ensuring they achieve the successful delivery of the solution, to time, and on budget.
The Project Manager is a key interface between the client, design team, consultants, contractors, and other project stakeholders. The Project Manager helps to ensure actions are carried out by the appropriate parties at the right times to ensure deadlines are met and that value is added to the client's projects.
Click the link for the job description, responsibilities, and qualifications - PRJH01 - Graduate Project Manager.pdf
Project Information
- Gain a holistic 360 degrees understanding of the SPA alliance by completing rotational placements around Project Delivery, Commercial, Engineering, Solutions and Site/Commissioning.
- Gain involvement in a host of projects and continuous improvement processes which champions collaboration and innovation to ensure the SPA alliance not only remains industry leading but continues to push the boundaries and outperform.
- We foresee our Generalist Graduates to be future Project Manager, Senior Project Manager and beyond job holders in the alliance to truly enhance our project management expertise in-house.
- During the rotational placements, the job holder may realise where their passion and flair lies and may develop a particular bias but by building a more rounded senior leadership team for the future, we believe we can create more synergy across the alliance.
Graduate Development Programme
- The programme will focus on helping you to grow your personal and leadership skills, alongside business and of course, the technical skills you will learn day-to-day on the job.
- The programme is delivered in a variety of formats throughout the 2 years and will allow you to establish a network of contacts that will help and support you through the first 2 years and beyond. There may be opportunities to rotate to another project or sector of the business after 12 months in the business, for you to fully understand the depth and breadth of the services offered by the company.
- Our line managers are fully supportive of the Graduate Development programme and will be involved in helping you along the way.
- In addition to the programme, we offer mentoring and support in every area of work, as well as structured training programme to enable graduates to work towards achieving Chartership.
Reasons to use Rodeo
I’m in my final year doing Economics and I don’t know whether to apply for grad schemes now or do a masters first. What do you think?
Honest answer — it depends on where you want to end up. A lot of top grad schemes (Big 4, civil service, banking) don’t need a masters. Let’s look at the ones you’d be competitive for now, and we can decide if a masters actually adds anything.
Also worth knowing: most autumn 2026 applications are open now. Timing matters more than you think.
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Graduate Consultant — 2026 Scheme
Why you're a good match
StrongYour economics background and your summer at a regional bank line up with what PwC looks for on the consulting scheme. Applications close in four weeks.
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Why you're a good match
You’ve got the grades and the economics background, and your bank internship is exactly the experience this scheme looks for. Apply soon — deadlines close within the month.
Experience fit
Your summer at the bank plus your econometrics coursework map directly to the day-one responsibilities on this scheme — client modelling, market briefings, and deal support.
Only hits
No noise. No "maybe this fits." Just roles with a clear explanation of why they're right — and where to focus when applying.
Responsibilities
- Develop project schedules and monitor against the schedule goals for a small project or several work packages.
- Develop an understanding of project management techniques in the alliance whilst adding your own input/spin on approaches.
- Create synergy and a 'joined up' approach to project management across teams to enhance efficiency.
- Gain an understanding of current challenges and obstacles across teams.
- Using theory, innovation and investigatory techniques, underpinned by data and evidence, suggest new ways of working/approaching work.
- Develop and monitor cost and schedule baseline (budgets, management reserve, undistributed budget, network schedules, and scope changes) for projects.
- Conduct effective Risk Management, ensuring that risks are recorded, managed and tracked to closure.
- Analyse available performance metrics to validate reported Programme and Project progress.
- Establish and maintain Client satisfaction by developing and maintaining relationships with relevant Client stakeholders.
- Co-ordinating the activities of the team by establishing the appropriate communication mechanisms, including meeting and reporting requirements.
- Ensure adherence to safe working practices including completing audits in line with schedule.
- Monitor and maintain compliance with the Working Time Directive.
- Supporting bids and other business development activities.
Knowledge, Skills, and Experience
Essential
- An interest in the industry and Costain.
- A minimum 2:2 degree qualification in Business Studies / Project Management or relevant subject.
- Good IT literacy.
- Strong data analysis and interpretation skills.
- A willingness to learn with appropriate instruction.
- Good communication skills, both written and verbally.
- An organised individual that can work well to deadline.
- Building and maintaining positive working relationships.
- Someone that enjoys challenges and problem solving in their day-to-day work.
Desirable
- Good MS Office skills.
- Familiarity with the fundamentals of project management and/or project controls would be an advantage; namely work scope, scheduling, resourcing, budgeting, progress assessment, analysis, reporting and change.
Qualifications
Essential
- Equivalent of 5 GCSEs, grades A*-C or 9-4 including Science, English, ideally with a Grade B or above in Maths.
- Bachelor’s degree or working towards a degree in Project Management, Construction Management, Quantity Surveying, Civil Engineering or Engineering is preferred.
- Currently pursuing or recently completed a diploma or degree in Project Management, Project Controls, Data Analytics, Construction, Engineering, or a related field.


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About Costain
Costain helps to improve people’s lives with integrated, leading edge, smart infrastructure solutions across the UK’s energy, water, transportation and defence markets. We help our clients improve their business performance by increasing capacity, improving customer service, safeguarding security, enhancing resilience, decarbonising and delivering increased efficiency. Our vision is to be the UK’s leading smart infrastructure solutions company. We will achieve this by focusing on blue chip clients whose major spending plans are underpinned by strategic national needs, regulatory commitments, legislation or essential performance requirements. We offer our clients leading edge solutions that are digitally optimised through the following five services which cover the whole lifecycle of their assets: future-shaping strategic consultancy; consultancy and advisory; digital technology solutions; asset optimisation and complex programme delivery. Our culture and values underpin everything we do.
Application Process
Costain appreciate the time and effort taken when applying for one of our positions but, due to the high volume of responses, we are unable to provide individual feedback on candidates at application phase. We do share individual feedback following an interview.
A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that disclose they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer.
It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people.
For more details please go to the Disability Confident website: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/disability-confident-campaign
Strategic Pipeline Alliance
Anglian Water has created a new delivery enterprise - the Strategic Pipeline Alliance. “SPA” is creating hundreds of kilometres of new, interconnecting pipelines to help combat the impact of climate change and keep fresh, clean water flowing across the Anglian Water region.
The new network is one of the largest infrastructure projects for a generation and is a complex and challenging major infrastructure project.
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