Skip to main content

Healthcare

Research careers and find opportunities in healthcare.

About

With over 1.28 million staff, the National Health Service (NHS) is one of the largest employers in the world, and is the biggest in Europe.

There are a variety of roles in the NHS, with over 350 career options. 744,000 members of staff are professionally qualified, such as HCHS doctors, qualified nurses and health visitors, midwives, qualified scientific, therapeutic and technical staff and qualified ambulance staff.

Other roles in the NHS include estates, IT, HR, administrative, porters, cleaners and cooks. This page will focus on healthcare specific roles only.

Roles and skills

The range of roles you can work in is huge and can suit graduates with a variety of skills. You could work for the NHS, private healthcare, or for charities. You can find opportunities in various roles, including radiography, speech and language therapy and podiatry.

Job profiles

Have a look at Prospects and targetjobs to find out what roles in this sector involve and how to get into them. Some of the job profiles include:  

Medicine

Dentistry

Allied health professions

Pharmacy

Optometry

Nursing and related occupations

Management

See NHS Careers for occupational information on a variety of NHS management roles.

Skills employers look for
  • compassion, resourcefulness, stamina, motivation and perseverance
  • the ability to build a rapport and develop relationships
  • the ability to work within a multidisciplinary team of healthcare professionals
  • excellent listening and communication skills for dealing with patients
  • the ability to work under pressure and deal with different demands
  • good IT skills for keeping patient records
  • excellent time management skills to balance appointments with admin work
  • a flexible approach to work and the ability to manage change
  • empathy, patience and tact
  • verbal and written communication skills, including skills in listening, observing, taking notes and record keeping
  • organisation skills to plan and deliver activities
  • creativity, energy and enthusiasm
  • cultural awareness and respect for the religious and cultural diversity of patients
  • an understanding of confidentiality and safeguarding issues
  • health, safety and risk awareness
Salaries

Starting salaries for graduate jobs in healthcare can vary widely depending on the position. 

To get an idea of typical starting salaries use the following resources: 

For information about how to negotiate a salary, visit Handling job offers. 

Be inspired

It’s not always easy to know which roles to apply for. The resources in this section can help you find inspiration from previous students and know where to get further support.

Inspiration from people working in the industry
Online reviews

Searching for reviews online can be a useful way to get an idea of what to expect from certain roles or employers. Reviews are written by employees with different opinions about what makes a good employer.  

Use the following review sites for inspiration and insight into the recruitment process: 

Glassdoor – company reviews from employees  

Not sure what you want to do?

If you’re not sure exactly what you want to do, we can help. You can book a guidance appointment via MyCareer. Our careers consultants can help you explore your options or plan your career.

Explore career planning advice
Making career choices
Exploring your options

Sector and industry insights

Researching the industry is essential, whether it’s to: 

  • help you decide which area to work in 
  • identify who to apply to 
  • tailor your application 
  • impress an interviewer with your knowledge of the sector 

Here are some resources to help you get started:

Career guides

Read career guides for each sector: 

Medicine

Dentistry

  • NHS: Dental team includes a breakdown of types of dentists, dentist training and your career after dental school.

Allied health professions

Pharmacy

Optometry

Nursing and related occupations

Industry news

Use online magazines and journals to follow news from your industry. Reading about trends and developments is important for applications and interviews. 

Attend events

Attend events to hear directly from professionals in the industry. 

See also our recruitment events and employer & sector insights.

Student societies

Join medicine specific societies, such as:

Social media

Use social media to find industry insights 

Join sector-specific groups on LinkedIn to keep up to date. Posts often include news, events and opportunities. You can also find useful insights on careers on Twitter and TikTok. Treat these with caution, as not all content may be accurate. 

Find out more about how to use social media for your career and subscribe to our  Twitter list. 

Professional bodies

Consider joining a relevant professional body/industry network  

Professional bodies often: 

  • run networking events  
  • have specialist groups you could join 
  • post vacancies on behalf of their members 
  • have member directories, useful for speculative applications 

Key organisations include: 

Medicine

Dentistry

Art therapy

Dietetics

Drama therapy

Music therapy

Occupational therapy

Paramedic

Physiotherapy

Prosthetics and Orthotics

Radiography

Speech therapy

Chiropody and Podiatry

Pharmacy

Optometry

Nursing and related occupations

Guide to finding opportunities

Opportunities are available across many sectors, including the NHS, private healthcare and charities.

There are various ways to find internships, placements and graduate opportunities. We’ve added some tips below to help you get started.  

  • search for advertised vacancies using the vacancy sites listed below 
  • look at the careers sections on company websites for student and graduate opportunities. Use Researching Employers to help you gain insights into companies 
  • attend events such as recruitment fairs and employer and sector insights  
  • contact employers speculatively – see Finding Hidden Opportunities to help you find organisations to approach 
  • follow companies on social media for latest news and updates 
  • consider registering with a recruitment agency for graduate jobs 
  • register with EmployAbility if you are disabled, neurodivergent or have a mental health condition. They can offer advice and support on applications to Newcastle students. They also run first year, internship and graduate programmes with inclusive employer partners. 
  • ask family and friends if they have any useful contacts who may be able to offer you work experience 
  • consider alternative ways to find relevant experience and develop your skills 
  • create your own opportunity by starting your own business or working freelance

Advertised work experience

For many healthcare degrees, you will have a compulsory placement within your course. However, this is not the only source of practical experience you can gain. Practical work experience is also very useful to support applications to healthcare degrees.

Opportunities in care or community work allow you to gain experience with people of different ages and circumstances, including those who are vulnerable, anxious or in distress.

Use our resources to get started: 

Paid opportunities
  • Search for vacancies on MyCareer - often advertises paid, part-time personal carer, care assistant and support worker vacancies.
  • NHS Jobs - search for part-time healthcare assistant or related jobs
  • Find a job - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)- regularly advertises part-time care assistant and similar roles
Voluntary experience

See Volunteering for more information. 

NCL internships

The Careers Service runs flexible, paid term-time and summer internships with local employers and on campus. NCL internships are aimed at all students, from any stage and often includes healthcare related projects.

Search for these under Vacancies on MyCareer. Type in ‘NCL internship’ into the text search box. 

You can find these advertised throughout the academic year. Full-time summer opportunities are advertised from around March.

Worldwide experience

Access GoinGlobal for internships in over 120 global locations, updated daily. Search for opportunities in the local language, as well as in English. You can also use their country guides to find:  

  • additional vacancy websites
  • CV, application and interview advice 
  • advice on living and working in different countries and cities around the world
Looking for ideas

If you’re looking for inspiration, try searching our NU Work Experience Directory. You can see where our students have had internships and placements in the last five years. To see all results in a search category, keep the search field blank.

Advertised graduate opportunities

When to apply

For your two years of foundation medicine after graduation, you will apply early in your last year, in September. See the BMA website for more information on applying to the foundation programme.

Similarly, for your year of dental foundation training, applications tend to open in August and close in September of your last year of study. See the Dental Hub website for information.

Other healthcare roles tend to be immediate start graduate jobs. These can be available all year round. You are more likely to apply for these towards the end of your studies.

Vacancy sites

Use our resources to get started: 

  • MyCareer - search for graduate schemes and graduate jobs in the North East, UK and overseas. Register/log in to access vacancies and sign up for personalised email alerts 
Healthcare vacancy sites

There are a wide variety of places to find vacancies within the healthcare sector.

Healthcare (general)

Medicine

Dentistry

Art therapy

Dietetics

Drama therapy

Music therapy

Occupational therapy

Orthoptic

Paramedic

Podiatry

Physiotherapist

Prosthetics and orthotics

The British Association of Prosthetists and Orthotists (BAPO)

Radiography

  • SoR - Society for Radiographers

Speech and language therapy

Pharmacy

Optometry

Worldwide vacancy sites

See International jobs for details of overseas vacancy sites. 

Access GoinGlobal for job adverts in over 120 global locations, updated daily. Search for opportunities in the local language, as well as in English. You can also use their country guides to find:  

  • additional vacancy websites  
  • CV, application and interview advice   
  • advice on living and working in different countries and cities around the world

Non-advertised work experience and graduate opportunities

Not all internships, placements and graduate jobs are advertised. In fact, many people create opportunities through:

A speculative approach is common for finding internships and placements and graduate jobs. This is where you approach a company directly to ask if they have any opportunities available. This is very common for work shadowing in hospitals and other healthcare settings.

How to access hidden opportunities

Start by identifying organisations you are interested in. Our guide to finding organisations below can help. Then use the following steps to approach them speculatively about possible opportunities:

  1. Identify a contact name to address your cover letter to. Call or email to find out who handles recruitment within the organisation. Or, find a key contact in the department you want to work in.
  2. Send them a tailored CV and cover letter. Express your enthusiasm for the sector. Show that you have researched the company.
  3. Follow up your speculative application with a phone call, or email, around a week later. This shows you are serious and motivated.
  4. If your application was unsuccessful, ask for feedback or advice, and keep trying!
When to contact organisations

You can use this approach at any point in the year. We recommend that you:

  • start your research as early as possible to gather relevant contacts
  • contact organisations around three months before you want the opportunity to begin
How to find organisations
UK organisations

Find contacts through professional associations, institutes and trusts, as listed in sector and industry insights, such as charities

See NHS authorities and trusts for details of specific trusts.

Worldwide organisations

Search GoinGlobal’s employer directory for company information in 196 countries. Their country guides list professional bodies around the world.

Specialist recruitment agencies

Recruitment agencies can be useful for finding graduate jobs in healthcare. These tend to be for immediate start positions. It's worth registering with one or two agencies towards the end of your course.  

Specialist agencies include: 

See recruitment agencies to find more agencies.

Finding overseas recruitment agencies

GoinGlobal’s country guides include details of recruitment agencies in specific countries. They are listed under the following headings:  

  • staffing agencies and temporary help firms  
  • executive recruiters and search firms  

Recruitment agencies may not operate in the same way in different countries. In the UK agencies are free for job seekers, but this may not be the case elsewhere. Explore the terms and conditions of an agency before signing up to use them.  

Other ways to gain relevant experience

We've added some suggestions to help you develop your skills and gain relevant experience. 

  • sign up for free online courses to develop new skills such as on FutureLearn: Online Courses and Degrees from Top Universities
  • attend events and network to make contacts and connections, eg through the professional bodies above
  • work shadowing - see 'non-advertised work experience and graduate opportunities' for more information
  • enter an healthcare related competition - prizes can often include internships

Work for yourself

Our START UP team can help you explore working for yourself at any stage. Whether you want to explore an idea or have already launched a business or freelance career, you can access the following help: 

  •  support with idea generation 
  • provide tailored advice 
  • help you develop your skills
  • introduce you to like-minded peers
  • refer you to further support from mentors
  • award grant funding up to £3,000 
START UP pages

Further study, training and funding

Most professions in the healthcare sector require specific accredited university qualifications.

Medicine

For information on routes into medicine see Applying for Medical School.

Allied healthcare professions

To practise as an allied healthcare professional you will need to register with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). To register with the HCPC you first need to complete an approved degree. See the individual occupational profiles in roles and skills for information on specific professions.

Find a course by using the NHS course finder.

Pharmacy

To practise as a pharmacist, you need to complete a master's degree in pharmacy (MPharm). This must be a course approved by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).

On completion of your degree, you must first complete a pre-registration training year in a GPhC-approved community or hospital pharmacy and pass a registration exam.

Find a degree by using the NHS course finder or see the GPhC website for details of approved MPharm courses.

Optometry

To practise as an optometrist you need to complete a General Optical Council (GOC) approved degree in optometry.

On completion of your degree, you must then complete 12 to 15 months' pre-registration training with a GOC-approved optometrist and pass a GOC assessment.

See the GOC website for details of approved courses.

Nursing

To qualify as a nurse, you need to complete a degree approved by the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC).

Find a course by using the NHS or NMC course finder.

Funding

Funding for some healthcare courses is provided by NHS bursaries. The amount of money awarded will depend on your personal eligibility and student status, you can find this out by using a bursary calculator.

Find out about additional funding that is available, including the NHS Learning Support Fund.

See Further Study for more information on funding and applying for courses, or speak to one of our information advisers.

Related sectors

You may also be interested in Public Health, Complementary Therapies or Counselling & Psychotherapy

Book an appointment
Find vacancies