Finance Development Programme - Financial Management

Good things this way

Whether you’re a graduate ready to make an impact, or a career changer looking for a new challenge, you’ll gain hands-on experience, develop future-ready skills, and contribute to projects that deliver banking that’s fairer, more rewarding, and for the good of society.

You’ll follow a tailored learning pathway designed to build the skills you’ll need for the future of financial services. Through digital learning, interactive workshops, insights from leaders and industry experts, and hands-on experience in your role, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to put your learning into practice. You’ll also learn alongside colleagues from across Nationwide, helping you build your network and understand more about how our business works.

We’ll support your development through structured learning, personalised development and hands-on experience, helping you grow with confidence.

Looking for a rewarding career in banking? Good things this way.

Where you’ll be working

Here in the Finance function, we make sure we spend our customers money wisely, to maximum their benefit. As a function, we are made up of diverse individuals, skills and capabilities that enable us to provide financial partnering services, produce statutory and regulatory reporting, raise wholesale funds & maintain liquidity. We provide lending for social housing, create and deliver a financial plan, manage stress testing requirements, provide and maintain financial systems & technology, and drive the development of our Society Strategy.

Location 

At Nationwide we offer hybrid working wherever possible. More rewarding relationships are supported through our hybrid approach, bringing colleagues together across our UK wide estate, whilst also supporting generous access to home working. We value our time in the office to solve problems, to learn, and to feel connected.

For this job you'll spend at least two days per week, based at our Swindon or Glasgow offices

If we receive a high volume of relevant applications, we may close the advert earlier than the advertised date, so please apply as soon as you can. 

What you’ll be doing on the Financial Management Development Programme 

Over three years, you'll build the skills, experience and professional qualifications needed to develop a successful career in financial management.

As your knowledge grows, so will the complexity of the work you take on. You'll gain exposure to different areas of Financial Management, develop commercial awareness and learn how financial insight helps Nationwide make informed decisions and deliver good outcomes for customers and members.

Year One

Your first year is focused on building strong foundations.

You'll develop an understanding of management accounting, financial reporting and business performance while supporting the production and analysis of monthly financial information. Working alongside experienced colleagues, you'll learn how financial data is used to support decision-making across the Society.

You'll also identify opportunities to improve processes, build relationships with stakeholders and begin studying towards your professional qualification.

Year Two

As your confidence and experience grow, you'll start taking ownership of more complex work and play a bigger role in producing financial insight.

You'll contribute to management reporting, support business planning activity and help develop the analysis that influences business decisions. You'll also begin building strong relationships across Nationwide, working with stakeholders to understand challenges, provide insight and support key initiatives.

This is the point where you'll move beyond understanding the numbers to helping explain what they mean and why they matter.

Year Three

In your final year, you'll take on greater responsibility and develop the skills needed to progress into a professional finance role.

You'll work on more complex business challenges, contribute to financial planning activity and provide valuable insight to stakeholders across the organisation. You'll continue developing your commercial awareness, influencing skills and ability to communicate complex financial information clearly and confidently.

By this stage, you'll have developed a strong understanding of how finance supports business performance and helps Nationwide plan for the future.

Alongside your role, you'll complete a professional qualification through CIMA, helping you build recognised technical expertise alongside practical workplace experience.

You'll also gain access to a bespoke three-year learning journey designed to develop core business skills that complement your technical development. Along the way, you'll build a network of peers from across the organisation, learning alongside other early careers colleagues and sharing experiences throughout your programme.

This isn't a programme spent watching from the sidelines. From day one, you'll contribute to meaningful work, build valuable professional skills and develop the experience needed for a successful long-term career in finance.

Successful completion of the programme, together with your professional qualification, will position you well for future opportunities within Nationwide's Finance teams.

Who we’re looking for on the Financial Management Development Programme

We're looking for driven, curious people with high standards and a genuine interest in Finance. You'll share our determination to push for better and put customers first, not just in what you deliver, but in every decision you make. Whatever your route, our Financial Management Development Programme will help you build the skills and experience for a rewarding career in banking.

To succeed on our Financial Management Development Programme, you'll need to show:

• Motivation to study towards professional finance qualifications.

• Curiosity and the ability to analyse data and information to problem solve, identify challenges and propose solutions. 

• Strong organisational skills to plan and deliver work with attention to detail.

• Good time management and prioritisation skills for working in a fast-paced environment.

• You want to get involved in activities across the Finance department, such as working with our recognition teams or Network and Knowledge events.

• Two A Level qualifications (A*-E) and three GCSE’s at grades A-C/grade 9-4 (or equivalent) including Maths and English Language

• A high standard of numerical, written, and verbal communication skills and experience of using Excel

• Commercial awareness of Nationwide and the Financial Services industry.  

• The ambition to keep growing, take on new challenges and build towards your next career step

• A logical, methodical approach, with the ability to understand both the detail and the bigger picture 

• The confidence to build relationships and work with colleagues across the business 

• Drive, high performance and a commitment to learning from feedback and setbacks 

• A determination to push for better and put customers first in the decisions you make

Our customer first behaviours put customers and members at the heart of how we work together. They are the set of behaviours that every colleague needs to display, in every role:

• Feel what customers feel - We step into our customers’ shoes, using their feedback and insights to empathise with them and to understand their needs, so that every decision we make starts and finishes with our customers in mind
• Say it straight - We are brave in speaking out and saying what we think – we’re honest and direct with good intent, openly sharing diverse perspectives to reach the best conclusions and using language everyone can understand
• Push for better - We don’t settle for mediocrity, we challenge the status quo, taking responsibility for continuous improvement and personal development
• Get it done - We prioritise what will have the greatest impact, we are decisive, and we take accountability for delivering brilliant customer outcomes. 

The extras you’ll get

High performing and purpose-driven colleagues deserve a rewarding career and competitive benefits to match. We offer you:

• Structured learning, personalised development and hands-on experience to help you build future-ready skills and progress your career in banking

• 25 days holiday each year, which increases over time to 30. Plus, you can ‘buy’ up to 10 extra days 

• The opportunity to earn an annual bonus based on your performance
• Private medical insurance to help you access additional healthcare when you need it
• Wellhub access to a range of free and paid fitness and wellbeing options, plus free on-site gyms at selected locations
• A highly competitive pension to help you start building your financial future 
• A great selection of additional benefits through our salary sacrifice scheme
• Up to 14 paid hours each year to volunteer for a cause that matters to you
• Life assurance to provide additional peace of mind for you and the people who matter to you

Banking – but fairer, more rewarding, and for the good of society

We forge our own path at Nationwide.

As a mutual, we’re owned by our members - those customers who bank, save or have a mortgage with us. We challenge the financial sector status quo. We don’t see customers as the engine of our own profit. We share our profits with them and put their needs first. Always there when they need us. Supporting them and their lives.

If you’re inspired by fairer finances, passionate about making a meaningful impact, and truly care about our customers, you’re one of us.

At Nationwide, you are challenged to grow and rewarded for doing so. Valued. Recognised. Inspired to be your best. As a community we want our working lives to count. As a team, we celebrate what we achieve. As a standard-setter, we work for the good of customers, communities, and broader society.

We are purpose-driven. Uncompromisingly customer. Unstoppably Nationwide.

What to do next 

If this role is for you, please click the ‘Apply Now’ button, where you’ll be asked to answer a few quick questions for us.  

We’ll send you our online assessments to complete and there will also be a short video interview to find out more about you. If you are successful, you could be selected to attend one of our assessment centres which run from December 2026.

Visa sponsorship information 

As a UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) approved sponsor, we have a responsibility to comply with the applicable Immigration Rules and guidance (which are subject to change). The Skilled Worker route has specific requirements relating to skill level of the role and minimum salary expectations. As such, our ability to employ individuals who require sponsorship for immigration purposes is limited or may not be possible for some programmes. 

VISA Sponsorship cannot be offered on this programme. 

All successful applicants with need to demonstrate their right to work in the UK on commencement of employment and for the duration of the programme applied for without requiring sponsorship. 

If you have any further questions, please contact us at Early.Careers@nationwide.co.uk