Grant Thornton Interns and Placements 2027: does it sponsor a UK visa?

NoInterns and placements (12 month)

No. Grant Thornton UK does not sponsor its interns and placements for international students who need a visa. Grant Thornton UK offers internships and 12-month placements for university students in their penultimate year or on a sandwich year course, alongside apprenticeships and a three-year graduate programme. Its early careers FAQ states plainly that its trainee programmes, which cover the placement route, do not meet the minimum salary thresholds required for visa sponsorship under UK Home Office guidelines, so it cannot offer sponsorship for these roles.

Sponsors grads?: No
Pay vs threshold: Below the threshold
Opportunity: placement
2027 cycle: Applications open now for 12 Month Placement Programme (Summer 2027) adverts in Audit, Tax and Advisory, no closing date published; no summer internship adverts listed as of 24 October 2026
Confidence: high

Grant Thornton UK Interns and placements: at a glance

Grant Thornton offers summer internships, taken between penultimate and final year, and 12-month placements for students on a sandwich degree course. Both start with a two-day orientation, then work on real client projects with a mentor and team buddy, and can fast-track students to a graduate programme offer. Source

Duration: 12 months for placements“12-month placements are a great option for students on a sandwich degree course.”Source
Who can apply: Students in their penultimate year (internships) or on a sandwich year course (placements)“Internships and 12-month placements for university students in their penultimate year, or on a sandwich year course.”Source
Locations: Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Edinburgh, Gatwick, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Oxford, Reading, Sheffield, Southampton“You could join us in one of the following locations: Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Edinburgh, Gatwick, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Oxford, Reading, Sheffield, Southampton.”Source
Degree requirement: penultimate year of university, or on a sandwich year course“Internships and 12-month placements for university students in their penultimate year, or on a sandwich year course.”Source

How Grant Thornton UK recruits

2027 intake (page undated). 5 stages, from Grant Thornton UK's own careers pages, checked 2026-10-03. Test providers are named only where Grant Thornton UK names them.

Applications may close early once places are filled, so apply well before any published deadline. Source

1
Online form
Application form
Short online form of essentials, under 20 minutes. A dedicated recruiter supports each candidate.
- about 20 minutes
“You'll start with a quick online form. We only ask for the essentials, so it shouldn't take more than 20 minutes.”
Source
2
Online assessment
Online tests, Neurosight
Strengths-based assessment under 5 minutes, built by Neurosight, with adaptive scoring and warm-up items. No preparation needed; personalised strengths report afterwards.
- about 5 minutes
“The online assessment usually takes less than 5 minutes to complete, and was created by Neurosight, who are specialists in designing bias-free assessments of potential.”
Source
3
Written case study
Written exercise
About 20 minutes on a computer: read written content and data about a client scenario and write a mini report. Practice case study and tips guide provided.
- about 20 minutes
“This assessment is assessing your ability to understand and interpret written content and data. [...] This stage will take around twenty minutes to complete.”
Source
Group exercise
Group exercise
Virtual group exercise led by a recruiter, assessing collaboration, listening and time management.
“The penultimate stage of the application process is a group exercise, which will take place virtually and be led by a member of our recruitment team.”
Source
Final round interview
Final interview
In-person individual interview at a UK office with one or two assessors from the service line, covering motivation and values. Offer made by phone by the recruiter.
“The interview will take place in one of our UK offices, with one, or two, assessors from the service line you have applied for.”
Source

Every programme and stage at Grant Thornton UK

“At present, our trainee programmes do not meet the minimum salary thresholds required for visa sponsorship under the UK Home Office guidelines. As a result, we’re unable to offer visa sponsorship for these roles.”

Grant Thornton UK, from its own careers pages

The catch: The FAQ groups all trainee programmes together rather than listing the placement separately, so a student has to infer that the 12-month placement is covered by the same pay-threshold block that rules out apprentices and graduates.

Grant Thornton UK early careers Verify on gov.uk See the licence record

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What Grant Thornton UK publishes about this programme

Checked against Grant Thornton UK's own careers pages on 2026-10-24. Anything not published is worth asking the early careers team before you apply.

Visa sponsorship policy: published
Application dates: published
Programme description: published
Duration and start date: published
Who can apply: published
Pay: not published
Locations: published
Degree requirement: published
Recruitment stages: published

More early careers programmes at Grant Thornton UK

Graduate Programme (Audit, Tax, Advisory streams)graduate scheme, no
Trainee Apprenticeship, Audit, Tax or Advisory (Level 4 then Level 7 apprenticeship qualifications)apprenticeship, no

Sources

Verdict last checked 2026-09-21. Application dates last checked 2026-10-24. How we check programme verdicts

Common questions

Does Grant Thornton UK sponsor visas for its interns and placements?

What is the Grant Thornton UK interns and placements?

Does the pay clear the UK Skilled Worker salary threshold?

The pay for this scheme sits below the Skilled Worker salary threshold, which is itself a reason sponsorship is not possible.

What is the catch international students miss with Grant Thornton UK?

The FAQ groups all trainee programmes together rather than listing the placement separately, so a student has to infer that the 12-month placement is covered by the same pay-threshold block that rules out apprentices and graduates.

When do applications open for the Grant Thornton UK interns and placements?

Applications open now for 12 Month Placement Programme (Summer 2027) adverts in Audit, Tax and Advisory, no closing date published; no summer internship adverts listed as of 24 October 2026. Checked on 2026-10-24 against Grant Thornton UK's own site.

How long is the Grant Thornton UK interns and placements?

12 months for placements, according to Grant Thornton UK's own careers information.

Who can apply for the Grant Thornton UK interns and placements?

Students in their penultimate year (internships) or on a sandwich year course (placements), according to Grant Thornton UK's own careers information.

Where is the Grant Thornton UK interns and placements based?

Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Edinburgh, Gatwick, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Oxford, Reading, Sheffield, Southampton, according to Grant Thornton UK's own careers information.

What degree do you need for the Grant Thornton UK interns and placements?

penultimate year of university, or on a sandwich year course, according to Grant Thornton UK's own careers information.

How should I confirm Grant Thornton UK's sponsorship before applying?

Read the specific vacancy on Grant Thornton UK's careers site, ask its early-careers team directly, and check the employer on the gov.uk Register of Licensed Sponsors. Policies and thresholds change, so treat this page as a starting point and confirm for the exact role and cycle.

Related guides

All visa and sponsorship guides

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