Job Description

Job Introduction

The Met Office is delighted to open our advertising for Industrial Placements 2026.


This is an exciting opportunity to join the Met Office on a 12-month Year in Industry placement, commencing at the start of July 2026, developing your skills and knowledge and ensuring you gain the most value possible from your experience with us.


You will have the opportunity to network with our cohort of Industrial Placements all over the Met Office and understand what career opportunities are on offer at the Met Office after you graduate.


We're looking for a

Library and Archive Industrial Placement

2026

to help us make a difference to our planet.


As our

Library and Archive Industrial Placement 2026

, the job may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in the office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and the location advertised will be your contractual place of work. As an Industrial Placement, we would expect you to attend the office three days a week as a minimum.


Our opportunity is full time, 37 hours per week. Our people are at the heart of what we do and we'll do our best to agree a working pattern that works for everyone.

World changing work

From science to technology, from meteorology to management, and from planning to communication, our expertise helps us stand out as the authority on weather accuracy and climate prediction. We help individuals, industries and government to make better decisions to stay safe and thrive. This is the Met Office. This is who we are.

We're a force for good - focusing on our environmental and social impact We're experts by nature - always learning and developing to do things better We live and breathe it - putting our purpose at the heart of decision-making We're better together - understanding partnerships and inclusivity make us greater We keep evolving - pushing boundaries to make tomorrow better for our customers

Your world of expertise

Our Industrial Placement scheme offers ambitious and capable undergraduates the opportunity to gain valuable experience working alongside diverse and highly skilled experts in their field. You'll be working on projects that really matter and will make a difference.


The National Meteorological Archive (NMLA) is part of the Met Office Public Weather Service (PWS). It is part of the Services Transformation team which is, in turn, part of the Services Directorate. The NMLA is managed by the Library and Archive Manager who reports to head Services Transformation and also provides written reports to the Public Weather Service Customer Group via the PWSCG Secretariat.


The National Meteorological Archive is required by the Public Weather Service Customer Group maintain the trusted voice of the Met Office by providing weather and climate information to enable the public and specialist users (i.e. academia) to research and understand the science and history of meteorology. There is also a legal requirement handed down to the Public Weather Service from the Ministry of Justice (under the Lord Chancellor) to archive meteorological data on behalf of the UK Public in accordance with the Public Records Act 1958. The archive seeks to preserve, in perpetuity, records relating to the national memory of the weather in both paper and also digital formats.



As our Library and Archive Industrial Placement, you will carry out day-to-day operational tasks including enquiries, cataloguing, preservation and specialist L&A systems maintenance and exploitation. You will also have the opportunity to be involved with supporting communication, promotion and engagement activities and will be a part of the KILAM (Knowledge, Information, Library and Archive Management) profession.

Your key duties

Handling and responding to a wide range of customer enquiries via e-mail, telephone and in person. Carrying out cataloguing tasks and undertaking basic preservation. Use of specialist Library and Archive systems including cataloguing, loans and enquiry logging modules within our L&A Catalogue and loading records to our Digital Library and Archive. Carrying out digital archiving activities Involvement with promotion, reach and engagement activities including interacting with visitors with different levels of knowledge.

Why join us

Our work is life-changing, often life-saving and always life-enhancing. The Met Office is Great Place to Work UK certified. We are also featured on their 'Best Workplaces in Tech' 2023 and 2024 lists, as well as their '54 Best Workplaces for Women' 2023 list.


Your package includes:

Your salary will be 27,170 Annual Leave starting at 27.5 days Access to discounted shopping, inclusive of retail, leisure and lifestyle brands

Whilst this is a temporary position until July 2027, there may be an opportunity to apply for our Graduate Development scheme upon completion of your university studies. However, this is not guaranteed and would be subject to programme availability and a successful application.

Essential Criteria, skills and experience:

Demonstrable interest in developing skills and experience with a view to pursuing a career in either the Library or Archive sector (experts by nature) LEAD CRITERIA Strong customer service and communication skills in person, via telephone and by email. Able to research, collate and present information for different audiences (experts by nature). Able to problem solve and think independently to find the best solution to a question. A good team player able to work with and support a diverse team (we're better together). Strong IT skills with the ability to adapt to specialist systems and programmes quickly and accurately. Able to follow instructions and work independently to complete tasks consistently.

How to apply

If you share our values, we'd love to hear from you! Click apply to begin your application.


Please complete your career history and provide evidence against each of the essential criteria in the supporting statement questionnaire. We recommend candidates use the CARL method (Context, Action, Result and Learning) for presenting evidence of experience and skills. Please also look at the Early Careers Programmes Application Guidance at the bottom of this advert.


Closing date: 23:59 7th December 2025. Please note we often receive a high volume of applications, but we will contact everyone who applies once the closing date has past.


Interviews will be completed by February 2026.

Using AI in your application

We welcome applications that use AI tools for support in drafting or refining, as long as they accurately reflect your own skills and experience. All hiring decisions at the Met Office are made by people, not AI. For more details, visit our approach to recruitment.

How we can help

If you have any questions or would like to discuss this opportunity further, please contact us at careers@metoffice.gov.uk.


If you're considering applying and need support to do so, please get in touch. You can request adjustments either within your application or by contacting us. Should you be offered an interview, please be aware there may be a selection exercise which could include a presentation, written test or a scenario-based activity. You can select in your application to be considered under the Disability Confident Scheme. To be invited to interview/assessment under this scheme, your application must meet the essential criteria for the role.


We understand that great minds don't always think alike and as an equal opportunities employer we welcome applications from those with all protected characteristics. We recruit on merit, fairness, and open competition in line with the Civil Service Code.


We can only accept applications from those eligible to live and work in the UK - please refer to GOV.UK for information. We require Security clearance, for which you need to have resided in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years to be eligible, 2 of these years must be immediately preceding the point of your application. You will need to achieve full security clearance within your first 6 months with us.