2027 Machine Learning Apprentice - Level 6 AI Engineer
THALES UK LIMITED
Templecombe (BA8 0DH)
Closes on Wednesday 17 February 2027
Posted on 5 October 2026
Contents
Summary
Working as part of our Specialist Underwater Systems Engineering team, you will support the rapid delivery of novel solutions, ensuring that our Royal Navy and export customers have the capability needed in today’s fast paced environment to carry out their critical missions, keeping them and our nation safe and secure.
- Wage
-
£24,000 a year
Minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)
Yearly performance-related pay uplifts
- Training course
- Machine learning engineer (level 6)
- Hours
-
Flexible workday. Monday - Friday, 37 hours a week.
37 hours a week
- Start date
-
Monday 6 September 2027
- Duration
-
2 years
- Positions available
-
1
Work
Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.
What you'll do at work
- Working with Underwater Systems specialists and software developers to create novel solutions
- Developing solutions with our partners across the multinational Thales organisation, academia and industry
- Participating in testing and validation activities
- Assisting with engineering investigations and problem solving
- Visiting customer sites, platforms and installations to support surveys, trials and system deployment where required
- Working with experienced engineers on live projects
Where you'll work
Ocean House
Throop Road
Templecombe
BA8 0DH
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
QA LIMITED
Training course
Machine learning engineer (level 6)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- Assess vulnerabilities of the proposed design, to ensure that security considerations are built in from inception and throughout the development process.
- Translate business needs and technical problems to scope machine learning engineering solutions.
- Select and engineer data sets, algorithms and modelling techniques required to develop the machine learning solution.
- Apply methodologies and project management techniques for the machine learning activities.
- Create and deploy models to produce machine learning solutions.
- Document the creation, operation and lifecycle management of assets during the model lifecycle.
- Apply techniques for output model testing and tuning to assess accuracy, fit, validity and robustness.
- Assess system vulnerabilities and mitigate the threats or risks to assets, data and cyber security.
- Refine or re-engineer the model to improve solution performance.
- Apply techniques for monitoring models in the live environment to check they remain fit for purpose and stable.
- Consider the associated regulatory, legal, ethical and governance issues when evaluating choices at each stage of the data process.
- Apply machine learning and data science techniques to solve complex business problems.
- Track and test continual learning models.
- Analyse test data, interpret results and evaluate the suitability of proposed solutions both new and inherited models, considering current and future business requirements.
- Identify, consider and advocate for ML solutions to deliver an environmental and operational sustainable outcome.
- Transition prototypes into the live environment.
- Complete audit activities in compliance with policies, governance, industry regulation and standards.
- Consider the risks with using digital and physical supply chains.
- Ensure the model capacity is scaled in proportion to the operating requirements.
- Support the evaluation and validation of machine learning models and statistical evidence to minimise algorithmic bias being introduced.
- Monitor data curation and data quality controls including for synthetic data.
- Identify and select the machine learning or artificial intelligence platform architecture and specific hardware, to contribute to solving a computational problem using allocated resources.
- Identify and embed changes in work to deliver sustainable outcomes.
- Monitor model data drift, using performance metrics to ensure systems are robust when moving outside of their domain of applicability.
- Develop a process to decommission assets in line with policy and procedures. Manage current and legacy models in line with industry approaches.
- Undertake independent, impartial decision-making respecting the opinions and views of others in complex, unpredictable and changing circumstances.
- Coordinate, negotiate with and manage expectations of diverse stakeholders suppliers and multi-disciplinary teams with conflicting priorities, interests and timescales.
- Produce and maintain technical documentation explaining the data product, that meets organisational, technical and non-technical user requirements, retaining critical information.
- Create and disseminate reports, presentations and other documentation that details the model development to confirm stakeholder approval for handover to implementation.
- Comply with equality, diversity, and inclusion policies and procedures in the workplace.
- Horizon scan to identify new technological developments that offer increased performance of data products.
- Apply Machine Learning principles and standards such as, organisational policies, procedures or professional body requirements.
- Integrate AI-based approaches, including those provided by third-party vendors’ Application Programming Interfaces, into existing and new processes.
- Proactive identification of the potential for automation for example through AI solutions embedded within tooling.
- Assess vulnerabilities of the proposed design, to ensure that security considerations are built in from inception and throughout the development process.
- Translate business needs and technical problems to scope machine learning engineering solutions.
- Select and engineer data sets, algorithms and modelling techniques required to develop the machine learning solution.
- Apply methodologies and project management techniques for the machine learning activities.
- Create and deploy models to produce machine learning solutions.
- Document the creation, operation and lifecycle management of assets during the model lifecycle.
- Apply techniques for output model testing and tuning to assess accuracy, fit, validity and robustness.
- Assess system vulnerabilities and mitigate the threats or risks to assets, data and cyber security.
- Refine or re-engineer the model to improve solution performance.
- Apply techniques for monitoring models in the live environment to check they remain fit for purpose and stable.
- Consider the associated regulatory, legal, ethical and governance issues when evaluating choices at each stage of the data process.
- Apply machine learning and data science techniques to solve complex business problems.
- Track and test continual learning models.
- Analyse test data, interpret results and evaluate the suitability of proposed solutions both new and inherited models, considering current and future business requirements.
- Identify, consider and advocate for ML solutions to deliver an environmental and operational sustainable outcome.
- Transition prototypes into the live environment.
- Complete audit activities in compliance with policies, governance, industry regulation and standards.
- Consider the risks with using digital and physical supply chains.
- Ensure the model capacity is scaled in proportion to the operating requirements.
- Support the evaluation and validation of machine learning models and statistical evidence to minimise algorithmic bias being introduced.
- Monitor data curation and data quality controls including for synthetic data.
- Identify and select the machine learning or artificial intelligence platform architecture and specific hardware, to contribute to solving a computational problem using allocated resources.
- Identify and embed changes in work to deliver sustainable outcomes.
- Monitor model data drift, using performance metrics to ensure systems are robust when moving outside of their domain of applicability.
- Develop a process to decommission assets in line with policy and procedures. Manage current and legacy models in line with industry approaches.
- Undertake independent, impartial decision-making respecting the opinions and views of others in complex, unpredictable and changing circumstances.
- Coordinate, negotiate with and manage expectations of diverse stakeholders suppliers and multi-disciplinary teams with conflicting priorities, interests and timescales.
- Produce and maintain technical documentation explaining the data product, that meets organisational, technical and non-technical user requirements, retaining critical information.
- Create and disseminate reports, presentations and other documentation that details the model development to confirm stakeholder approval for handover to implementation.
- Comply with equality, diversity, and inclusion policies and procedures in the workplace.
- Horizon scan to identify new technological developments that offer increased performance of data products.
- Apply Machine Learning principles and standards such as, organisational policies, procedures or professional body requirements.
- Integrate AI-based approaches, including those provided by third-party vendors’ Application Programming Interfaces, into existing and new processes.
- Proactive identification of the potential for automation for example through AI solutions embedded within tooling.
Training schedule
You will study towards a Level 6 in AI Engineer Apprenticeship with QA. The AI Engineer programme gives you the skills to design, build, and deploy advanced AI systems - including generative AI and deep learning. You’ll move from concept to real-world application. Creating solutions that scale and deliver impact.
The programme is 23 months in duration and is delivered via a virtual delivery model combining:
- Instructor led live workshops (28 days)
- Interactive labs and self-paced learning
More training information
Programme structure - You will complete learning in:
- AI System Development and Automation
- AI Solution Design and Testing
- Deep Learning and Transformers
- Business Process Optimisation with AI
- Security, Ethics and Explainable AI
- Leading AI and Future Innovation
Requirements
Essential qualifications
GCSE in:
A Level in:
Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.
Skills
- IT skills
- Attention to detail
- Problem solving skills
- Number skills
- Logical
- Team working
- Initiative
Other requirements
Because of the work we do at Thales, all roles are subject to security requirements.
To be considered for this position, you must have the permanent right to work in the UK and be able to successfully complete and maintain UK Government security checks, including Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) screening and Security Clearance (SC), which is a government background check, before starting employment.
To be eligible for SC clearance, you will typically need to have lived in the UK continuously for the last five years. As part of the vetting process, you will be asked to provide evidence of your identity, right to work in the UK, any time spent overseas during the last five years, and your employment and/or education history.
In addition, this role supports a UK Eyes Only programme and is therefore subject to government-mandated nationality restrictions. To satisfy the security clearance requirements for access to highly sensitive information, applicants must have been British citizens from birth and must not hold any other nationality. This requirement is determined by the UK Government and is a condition of programme access rather than an employment preference.
For further details of the evidence required to apply for security clearance please follow this link - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels.
About this employer
Together, we create the ingenious technological systems and innovations that impact and improve people's lives every single day. Even if you haven't heard the name Thales before, you've definitely benefited from our inventiveness. We reinvest 20% of our sales in Research & Development in the UK. Together we supply invention across 4 core areas: Aerospace, Space, Defence and Security, Digital Identity and Security.
https://careers.thalesgroup.com/global/en/uk-graduate-apprenticeships (opens in new tab)
Company benefits
- Holiday entitlement of 201 hours (plus a company day and bank holidays)
- Contributory company pension
- Health care cash plan
- Employee assistant programme
- Learning and Development support
- Employee discount and wellbeing portal
- Life cover
- 80 hours volunteering per year (first two years), then 24 hours each year after that
Disability Confident
A fair proportion of interviews for this apprenticeship will be offered to applicants with a disability or long-term health condition. This includes non-visible disabilities and conditions.
You can choose to be considered for an interview under the Disability Confident scheme. You’ll need to meet the essential requirements to be considered for an interview.
After this apprenticeship
Your earnings can increase over time with an apprenticeship. Find out about potential future pay (opens in new tab).
On completion of the programme, you will have the opportunity to achieve the Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Engineer Associate (AI -102) in addition to the IfATE L6AIE qualification.
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
THALES UK LIMITED
Thales Future Talent Team
furturetalent@uk.thalesgroup.com
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000057151.
Apply now
Closes on Wednesday 17 February 2027
After signing in, you’ll apply for this apprenticeship on the company's website.