Graduate Analyst

Grade D: £27,277 (National Framework)
Contracted Hours: Full time 37 hours per week
Location: Newcastle Office, with option to work from home after 6 months
Contract Type: 2-year fixed-term contract. Pending successful completion of the scheme, which you’ll evidence in a portfolio, you’ll be eligible for a permanent Grade C Analyst role subject to roles being available. Closing Date: Sunday 26th November 2023 at 11.59pm
Interviews are expected to take place virtually during the week commencing 8th January 2024 with anticipated start dates for a first intake in late March 2024 and a second intake in late September 2024. This role is NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points-based system. Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected, and any provisional offer of employment will be withdrawn.

Are you ready to launch your analytical career and make a difference in people’s lives?

Every one of us will rely on health and social care at some point in our lives. The Care Quality Commission’s mission is to ensure that care is safe, effective, compassionate and high-quality, but we can’t do this without data on how services are performing and analysts who transform that data into actionable insight.

Our Data & Insight Graduate Analyst Scheme welcomes an intake of graduates twice every year. Each cohort joins a programme designed to give them the opportunities to acquire the skills and experiences they need to flourish as an analyst. A technical background in STEM is not essential as we are open to graduates from any subject. Previous Graduate Analysts have come from a range of disciplines, including Psychology, Geography, Politics, and English. Instead, you’ll need to show you have a curious mindset and are able to piece together different bits of information to tell a compelling story about what it means. This makes the scheme a fantastic opportunity for anyone interested in starting a career in analytics.

Apply to join us for your opportunity to work on something that really matters, gain high-demand skills, and launch your analytical career.

Why this could be
a great role
for you….

The graduate analyst scheme is a two-year developmental scheme designed to broaden and develop your analytical skills. You will complete four placements rotating around the Data & Insight unit. These will expose you to the key stages of the analytical process and provide you with opportunities to develop the skills required for success in an analytical role.

You will work collaboratively to make a genuine contribution to the work of the Care Quality Commission, producing impactful insight from data. You’ll do this through a variety of both quantitative and qualitative analysis projects, assigned with your learning needs in-mind.

Examples of the type of work you will do:

Monitoring risks at health and social care services, so that colleagues across CQC know where to focus their attention;

Supporting CQC’s inspection of health and social care services by providing data and insight about them;

Developing new ways of communicating insight to colleagues across CQC and other audiences, such as NHS trusts and the public;

Quantitative and qualitative analysis for thematic reviews on a specific topic, such as people’s experiences of maternity services.

You’ll take ownership of your own development, using one day a week of protected time to pursue learning needs and explore areas of interest. You’ll be supported in this by your line managers and a scheme manager.

Your progress and achievements will be captured in a portfolio of work, which you’ll review on a regular basis to identify areas of development.

What we can offer you…

You’ll kickstart your career in data and analytics. Graduates move into Analyst roles on completion of the scheme and often progress quickly to Grade B Senior Analyst positions. Many graduates stay within Data & Insight, but some have gone into roles elsewhere in CQC, such as in Operations, or Research and Evaluation. Others have continued their analytical careers in the wider Public Sector including the NHS and beyond.

Throughout your time on the scheme, you’ll be supported by line managers for each of your placements, a dedicated scheme manager and a ‘buddy’. You’ll also gain an instant network of colleagues involved in the graduate programme past and present, and the opportunity to grow a larger network during placement rotations and through membership of a variety of groups and communities.

The placement rotation will give you the opportunity to gain knowledge, skills and experience in multiple areas of data and analysis, and to identify which area you want to specialise into. You will also benefit from flexible working after the first six months, including the option to become a homeworker or transfer to another CQC office.

Your health and wellbeing are important to us and are supported through a generous annual leave allowance (starting at 27 days and rising with service to 32.5 days, plus 8 Bank Holidays), a cycle to work scheme, discounted gym vouchers and access to a free employee assistance service 24 hours a day. We also understand the importance of financial health and offer membership of the NHS pension scheme, contributing about 14% of basic salary. You will also be able to access discounts to supermarkets, high street stores, electronics, fleet cars, plus we also have an internal reward scheme which could see you earn yourself a voucher or two!

We want to support you to succeed and be your very best, with opportunities for training and development along with the support of experienced managers and mentors.

We want to make working for CQC a great experience for everyone, and to role model a diverse and representative culture. To support an inclusive environment where colleagues feel empowered to bring their whole self to work, we support a variety of staff networks, including the Race Equality Network, LGBT+ Equality Network, Carers Equality Network, Disability Equality Network and Gender Equality network.

What you will bring…

You will be a curious, analytical thinker passionate about transforming data into meaningful insight. You must also bring a willingness to collaborate and exhibit strong communication skills.

Our graduate scheme is an excellent on-the-job development opportunity and in return we expect our graduates to display initiative and an appetite to learn new skills.

You will uphold the CQC values of Excellence, aiming for high performance; Caring, treating everyone with dignity and respect; Integrity; striving to do the right thing and Teamwork, helping each other to be the best we can be.

Essential Skills and Experience:

A UK undergraduate degree (a minimum of a 2:1 or equivalent qualification) in any discipline by the start of employment.

To have experience of analysing quantitative and/or qualitative information.

To be able to think analytically, and piece together different bits of information to tell a story about what it means.

To be able to communicate using a range of methods and styles to both technical and non-technical audiences.

To be able to plan projects that meet their purpose, are effective, and are delivered on time.

To be flexible and adaptable, able to prioritise your own workload and adapt to changing demands.

To be a self-starter, able to take the initiative in identifying problems and finding solutions.

To be a team player, working well with colleagues from a range of backgrounds and contribute to a positive working environment.

To be an effective learner who can take responsibility for seeking out opportunities for your own learning and development.

To take a professional approach to all your work and interactions.

No prior work experience is necessary, but you should have an awareness of the role of CQC, and an interest in health and social care services.

What our Graduates say…

“We have found the graduate scheme to be
a great way
to start our career in analytics. The scheme offers structured training and development opportunities tailored to the specific role of an analyst. We have found that the practical experience gained from working on both qualitative and quantitative projects has helped inform our future career paths. In addition, we believe the graduate programme
provides
a platform for networking and building professional relationships.” – (2022 and 2023 graduate cohorts)

“Having not worked in any analytical
capacity
prior to starting at CQC, the support offered by the scheme enabled me to feel comfortable starting my analytical career.
There were opportunities to work in a variety of different teams across the organisation, enabling to me to
identify
the types of work that I enjoyed, and to make connections across the organisation.” – JR., Senior Analyst (2014 graduate cohort)

What next?

Find out more about the scheme:

If you want to find out more about the scheme and speak to current and former graduate analysts about their experiences, we will be holding two drop-in sessions on Microsoft Teams on the following dates:

Tuesday 14 November: 17:00-17:45

Wednesday 22nd November: 17:45-18:30

If you are interested in attending one of these sessions, please send an email to GraduateAnalystScheme@cqc.org.uk and include your preferred date.

For any other enquiries regarding the scheme or for an informal discussion about this opportunity, please email: GraduateAnalystScheme@cqc.org.uk

Send in an application
:

Applications will be shortlisted on the strength of answers to two questions:

Why do you want to be a Graduate Analyst at CQC? Your response must demonstrate that you understand CQC’s role and purpose, and your motivation to become a Graduate Analyst at the CQC.

What can you bring to the role of Graduate Analyst? When answering this question you should highlight how you can evidence the skills and personal qualities outlined in the “Essential Skills and Experience” section above. We’ll be assessing your response as much on your future potential as your past experience, so consider this in your answer!

Generally, you should structure your responses clearly and concisely; when referring to the skills and experiences you have, you could consider using the ‘STAR’ method (https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/careers-advice/interview-advice/the-star-method). If your application is shortlisted, we’ll invite you to a virtual interview in January.

We are committed to being open and transparent around our processes and we endeavour to offer every candidate the opportunity to perform at their best throughout the recruitment process. We seek to support candidates to identify potential challenges and work with them to identify and facilitate reasonable adjustments as appropriate. Should you require assistance and/or would like to request a reasonable adjustment at any stage of the recruitment process, please contact a member of our Human Resources team via email: recruitment@cqc.org.uk

CQC is committed to promoting a fair and inclusive workplace where all our people can flourish and reach their full potential. We know diverse teams allow for a more creative and productive environment and therefore encourage applications from everyone regardless
of:
age, gender/sex, gender identity or expression, religion or belief, disability,
ethnicity
or sexual orientation.

Our application process is anonymous
up until the point of interview. This means no personal information is made available while the application is being
reviewed including but not limite
d
to the characteristics outlined above, this ensures that candidates are assessed objectively without bias
.

Our Values

Excellence – Meeting our challenge to be a high-performing organisation Caring – Treating everyone with dignity and respect Integrity – Demonstrating our passion for ‘doing the right thing’ Teamwork – Enabling us to be the best we can