Media & Internal Communications Assistant – Student Placement

Job summary

Please note this role is only available to current university students on a sandwich degree course, which has a requirement to complete a student placement year starting in August 2026 and with an expected graduation date in 2028.

This one year placement opportunity will see you joining our Internal Communications and Media & External Affairs teams. A unique position that will allow you to be part of all aspects of the communications functions at NS&I. Assisting and supporting with internal communications to employees and future talent via LinkedIn, and media relations and customer communications via our social media channels.

You’ll be encouraged to generate and develop ideas with the team and show your creativity, delivering engaging content that helps the team achieve their goals.

The team have supported a number of student placements and apprenticeship opportunities before. They have great experience and will be focused on making your time here an enjoyable and rewarding first step into your career.

If you have any questions about the role or your eligibility for the role. Please contact us at jobs@nsandi.com before applying.

Job description

Internal Communications:

• Work with the team to generate ideas and deliver content that is relatable, supportive, caring, and strikes curiosity and ambition in our people. This is part of our people promise and our priority to make NS&I a great place to work.

• Use creative skills to keep our communications fresh and exciting, delivering content across our internal channels through a variety of mediums including video production, building graphics and producing compelling written content.

• Support the delivery of events, from pre-event support and logistics, to on-the-day event co-ordination, and post-event communications and measuring the event’s success.

Media & External Affairs:

• Work with Media Relations Manager to amplify activity around Premium Bonds each month, specifically by preparing press releases, using data and working with regional media, proactively suggesting different ways that we can tell stories.

Please see attached role profile for further details.

Person specification

Essential experience

• Experience of using social media, including X (formerlyTwitter), Facebook, LinkedIn and online forums in a work (paid or voluntary) or study capacity

Essential qualifications

• Currently studying related degree with student placement year as part of sandwich course.

Essential skills

• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written. Proficient software skills, including using Excel.
• Effective ability to prioritise and multi-task in a busy team environment.

Qualifications

Currently studying a degree course, which has a requirement to complete a student placement year (minimum commitment of 1 year, starting August 2026)

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Managing a Quality Service
• Delivering at Pace

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £25,700, National Savings and Investments contributes £7,445 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

NS&I is one of the largest savings organisations in the UK with more than 24 million customers and over £240 billion invested. We are both a government department and an Executive Agency of the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Our origins can be traced back more than 150 years to 1861.

A small company with a big reach, we offer a range of benefits including flexible working, a 9-day fortnight scheme, a performance-related variable pay bonus, a generous pension scheme and great opportunities for development. We care for colleagues, respect one another, invest in our people and manage talent effectively.

Some benefits of working at NS&I include:

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible hybrid working options
• 9 day fortnight scheme
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 97%
• Generous annual leave – starting at 25 days, increasing to 30 days
• Performance related variable pay bonus
• Enhanced maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

To apply you must be a current university student on a sandwich degree course, which has a requirement to complete a student placement year starting in August 2026 and with an expected graduation date in 2028. If you meet this requirement, please click the link on this advert and follow the steps to complete the application form.

In your application you will be asked to provide the following

• A brief outline of your career history and qualifications.
• A 250 word personal statement on the following subject
  • The knowledge/theory of Media and/or Communications obtained through your degree or experience that would benefit working in a busy media/internal communications team.
• A 250 word statement for each selected behaviour at application. Please use examples from your experience and knowledge to demonstrate how you meet them, addressing the essential criteria in the Person Specification. We would recommend using the STAR method.

In the event we receive a large number of applicants, applications will be sifted first on the personal statement. Only those who demonstrate the minimal acceptable score for this statement will then qualify for the full sift.

If shortlisted, you will be invited to attend a 1 hour panel interview via video call.

Interviews will take place in the week commencing 6th April 2026.

Note we are unable to accept CVs and cannot accept applications from graduates who have completed their course.

This role is subject to Baseline Personnel Security Standard and financial credit checks.

Right to Work

As part of our recruitment process NS&I will ask about your right to work status. Candidates must have the right to work in the UK and meet eligibility requirements to work within the UK Civil Service.

If applying for a role on a fixed-term contract, you must hold a valid visa that covers the full duration of the contract, or at a minimum, the majority of the term.

Please note we are currently unable to offer visa sponsorship, as a result candidates requiring sponsorship are not eligible to apply.

Working for NS&I

We are currently working in a hybrid way with colleagues expected to work at their chosen office location for 40% of their working month.

Reserve List

A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.

Further information

Please visit our website http://nsandi-corporate.com/about-nsi for further details about NS&I.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : HR Team
• Email : jobs@nsandi.com

Recruitment team

• Email : jobs@nsandi.com

Further information

The law requires for selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit on the basis for fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service recruitment principles. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the recruitment principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact jobs@nsandi.com in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can contact the Civil Service Commission info@csc.gov.uk

Attachments

Media and Internal Communications Assistant Jan 2026 - role profile Opens in new window (pdf, 630kB)