Strategy & Insights Graduate 2025

You’ve probably heard of Auto Trader, but do you know what we’re all about?  

We’re the UK’s leading automotive marketplace, a heritage brand, and a tech darling of the stock market. We bring together vehicle buyers and sellers to give them real choices. Cars may be what we're best known for but we’re also the place for pretty much everything else on wheels, from e-bikes to caravans. 

In the automotive world, change is a constant, that’s why we take our job of untangling the complex car-buying journey very seriously. 

At our core, we’re all about people. We go our own way while embracing diversity and celebrating our differences. We dedicate ourselves to the idea that we work better together. 

Auto Trader is a beautiful, surprising and vibrant place to work. We might not be for everyone, but we could be perfect for you. 

About the job 

Our graduates are at their most supported right from their very first day. Their technical mentor, line manager and our dedicated early careers team are always there for them. And our collaborative, people-first culture means that help and support come naturally. It brings out the very best in them. It’ll bring the best out in you, too, when you join us as a Strategy & Insights Graduate. 

Our Strategy & Insights team use data and market research to develop consumer, retailer, and market insights. This is used to help inform our business strategy, product development and drive our position as a leader in the industry. Your role will involve analysing data, supporting research projects, and monitoring both current and future market and consumer trends. You'll receive fantastic exposure within the business through the teams’ varied work and collaboration.

You’ll be part of a team responsible for reporting industry insights, such as our monthly market intelligence report, and competitor/marketplace reports.

All our graduates start their journey at our in-house academy, and you don't have to be a car enthusiast to work here. Upon joining, we'll grow your knowledge of the automotive industry to truly understand our customers, and what we do as a business. 

You’ll monitor key changes in consumer behaviour and identify market trends which present opportunities and challenges for our business. You’ll develop your analytical skills and learn to identify key insights for the business, effectively communicating them to influence key stakeholders.

The role is based in our Manchester Campus. You will also work closely with colleagues in our London so travel to London will be required on average once or twice a month, we'll cover that expense. 

Our graduate programme starts October 2025 

What we're looking for 

• You’ll be a graduate (or graduating in 2025) in any degree discipline, or hold a level 6 qualification, with a passion for insights driven by data
• We're looking for you to have analytical skills and have an interest in distilling data to create key insights and driving their use across the business
• You’ll be curious and enjoy solving complex problems with ability or desire to piece together different sets of data and information, and interpret the findings
• You’ll enjoy working on new and varied pieces of work to help us stay on the front foot of evolving market trends
• You’ll have a collaborative approach. This will enable you to work with different teams across the business and communicate insights to these groups in a meaningful way 
• As a digital business, we're constantly evolving, so the ability to adapt to an ever-changing landscape 
• You might believe that a passion for cars is a requirement, but guess what? It’s not! At Auto Trader, you’re welcome just as you are.

We believe every candidate brings a unique blend of talents. If you find yourself ticking some, but not all, of the requirement boxes, we'd love to hear from you.

To help you submit your best application, you can check out our application top tips video here

Auto Trader's Graduate Academy 

Our graduate programme is designed to fast-track your career and develop your skills. It’s a 2-year programme with a permanent role from day one.  Your journey starts with a 6-week Academy Foundation alongside other graduates, learning about our company, culture, products and customers. You'll then focus on your specific role while working on practical projects as a cohort, with support from mentors, your dedicated line manager and the Early Careers team. For full details, visit our early careers blog here

Benefits and more

We’re offering a salary of £26,500 plus an additional 10% of your salary awarded to you in shares each year. These awarded shares will become yours in yearly instalments over the next three years, and you can choose to either sell them or keep them as shares. And you'll receive 29 days holiday, plus bank holidays and comprehensive private medical cover. 

That’s not all. We have employee pension contributions up to 7%, enhanced family leave provisions, a car salary sacrifice scheme, share-save options, and much more. 

We always want to give you the support you need and help prioritise your wellbeing, that’s why we provide access to 24/7 online GP and dentist, as well as specialist support for assisted fertility, gender dysphoria, menopause, period care plans and lots more.  

On top of all that, our hybrid model, Connected Working, combines the best of both worlds – office and home working. You’ll have two fixed weekly office days for team collaboration and one more of your choice to suit your work-life balance.  

Additionally, during July and August, along with two weeks in December, we have our remote first periods. During these times, you can work remotely, whether that's from another location in the UK or even from certain locations abroad.