EY recruits 48 graduates and apprentices to Cambridge and Luton among record intake of 1,473

EY has recruited 48 graduates and apprentices to its Cambridge and Luton offices.

They are among a record intake of 1,473 young people into the UK business this year - up 35 per cent on 2021.

The company said almost 40 per cent of the cohort of 1,269 graduates and 204 apprentices would be based in its regional offices.

Forty of those joining Cambridge and Luton are graduates, while eight are apprentices. And EY said 29 per cent of those joining its Cambridge office were women, while 21 per cent were from ethnic minority backgrounds.

Stuart Wilkinson, EY’s managing partner for the East of England, added: “Our commitment to recruiting new talent demonstrates the strength of our business and the opportunities available across the region. I’m pleased to welcome this new cohort of students who will be working across our business areas and look forward to seeing their careers grow and flourish at EY.”

The company said it had invested in new technology to simplify its hiring processes, enabling candidates to complete applications in one go expect decisions more quickly.

Hywel Ball, EY’s UK chair, said: “These are record numbers for EY as we continue to invest in young talent to support our growth across the UK. We’re continuing to see strong levels of client demand and continued investment across the firm, which is why we’ve increased our student intake year on year, over the last three years, and hired more than 3,600 students.

“This is an important talent pool for EY that we want to nurture and support as they begin their careers. It’s also why for a third year running, we honoured all conditional offers we made prior to A-Level and Highers results in recognition that many students had their studies disrupted during the course of the pandemic.

“Over the coming months, our new students will spend time getting to know their colleagues across EY, begin their training and start working with clients.”

EY, which provides assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services, provided work experience, summer internship and industrial placements to more than 470 young people nationally this year.

It is also creating a virtual career centre to provide candidates, parents and teachers with resources to support early career decisions.

And it is using digital technology to engage and attract candidates alongside in-person events at schools, colleges and universities. It uses virtual reality job simulations at career fairs.

Justine Campbell, EY’s managing partner for Talent in the UK, says: “Young talent is essential to our future business growth. We are consistently improving accessibility through a range of entry routes to attract and retain the UK’s best and diverse talent. We were the first of the Big Four to remove the 2:1 academic criteria for all graduate roles in 2015, and our recruitment processes have evolved and continue to be market-leading.

“We’re excited to return to on-campus events as it’s an important touchpoint for us to meet and engage with potential student recruits. Over the next two weeks, we will be visiting 35 campuses across the UK in person and virtually, where our people will be talking about EY and offering virtual reality simulations, where potential candidates can experience what it’s like to work for us, alongside giveaways and fireside chats. We really value our time on campus to showcase our brand and get feedback from students.”