Graduate Data Scientist (2026 Data Science Graduate)
Contract type: Permanent
Location: Hatfield (Blended working – 3 days in the office)
Working hours per week: 40 hours
Level: Entry Level – Graduate
Starting Salary: £32,000
Application closing date: Sunday 9th November 2025
About Us
Our mission is to deliver joy in every shop, through unbeatable choice, unrivalled service, and reassuringly good value. We’re Ocado Retail, a market‑leading joint venture between Ocado Group and M&S and the world’s largest dedicated online supermarket ocado.com. Not only is Ocado.com the only place to shop a full range of M&S food online, it’s also the home to the widest online supermarket range in the UK and champion of small, independent brands. We’re also the brains behind Zoom by Ocado, our same‑day grocery delivery service.
About The Team And The Role
Data is core to our decision making, and we have one of the richest datasets in the industry. The Data Science team develops models which turn our data into actionable insights. Our mission is to leverage data to give the best value and experience to our customers and suppliers whilst increasing profitability and growth for Ocado Retail. The team is responsible for understanding the complexities in the data, generating appropriate models to answer business questions, and delivering the outputs of these models to stakeholders in diverse areas of the business. We work across functions to productionise these models so they are available to the right people at the right time. This could be in the form of a data table with the outputs of the model, or developing an interface to allow users to interact with the data in a way that allows them to leverage models for their specific needs. We apply statistics, machine learning and artificial intelligence to our data at scale, using Python, SQL and Google Cloud Platform (GCP). We are cross‑functional by design, working with stakeholders across the business with varying degrees of technical expertise; communicating complex ideas is core to the success of the Data Science team.
What You’ll Do
This scheme is about learning how we apply data science in Ocado Retail. The majority of your time will be spent in the Data Science team, owning projects from start to finish with responsibility for managing stakeholders and delivery of data science solutions with support from the wider team. You will develop your Python and SQL skills to answer business questions, and you will have opportunities to rotate into other areas of the business and explore analytics, insight and data engineering with Ocado Retail. You will be given support and guidance in scoping data science projects, developing novel solutions and delivering these to key stakeholders. A typical project involves researching a business question within the context of scientific literature, identifying relevant data sources, developing models that provide an answer to the question, and delivering this to our internal stakeholders. Throughout this process you will communicate progress to the wider team and stakeholders. You will be taught our coding standards, and by the end of the programme you will have a rounded knowledge base of how data is used in the organisation and how to apply statistical approaches to improve our service for customers and suppliers. Placements in other teams will broaden your awareness of what goes into data‑driven decision making. These may involve:
- Working in an analyst team within insight for 6 months in either Marketing, Category, Operations, Forecasting, Customer Research, Web Merchandising, or Trading (Range, Pricing and Promotions)
- Delivery of key analytic projects for the designated team and the wider business
- Building relationships with analyst colleagues and understanding different data needs throughout the business
- Working with Data Engineering for an expanded understanding of how data is processed, prepared and used in the wider business
Throughout the scheme you will discuss your preferences for how to develop your data science skills to match your needs and the needs of the business. During the last six months of the scheme you will be encouraged to apply for permanent roles within Ocado Retail.Who You Are
- Have a curious mind and a passion for learning new methods of problem solving
- Have a methodical approach to explore every angle of a problem to be certain it’s completely solved
- Have strong logical reasoning to unpick sometimes complex code to find the source of an issue
- Experience with Python and SQL would be beneficial
- Have knowledge of statistical concepts and their applications would be beneficial
- Have great communication skills with a passion for data storytelling
What You Need To Apply
- CV & Cover Letter – Why Ocado Retail? Why this scheme? What do you hope to achieve/gain?
- A 2:1 degree in a STEM field or a field with significant data usage from an accredited UK University
- The legal right to work in the United Kingdom upon scheme commencement and duration of the scheme
When will you hear from us?
Applications close on Sunday 9th November 2025. We aim to be in touch with all candidates within two weeks of that date. After that, we’ll keep you informed between each stage. We treat all applications respectfully and fairly, so if you miss the closing date we won’t be able to make exceptions to extend stages.
How will we contact you?
Email – please add to your safe senders.
Our Learning & Development Promise
There are great opportunities to grow careers within our high‑performing and innovative business. These range from deepening your experience and expertise to potentially taking on management responsibility or even pivoting your career to something completely different. Our career management principles exist to help the realisation of career ambitions, whatever they might be. You are in the driving seat of your career. We all have a responsibility to do the things that can help move our careers forward. You should feel that you can have open and productive conversations with your manager about your career and development. You should be backed by the right tools – our learning system ‘Walnut’ is your one‑stop shop for all your learning needs.
What’s In It For You
By joining Ocado Retail you’ll experience life at the world’s largest online retailer, work with an amazing bunch of people who challenge what’s possible each day, and grow your skills and career in online retail. You’ll also have access to loads of great benefits to sweeten the deal. Here’s a taste of what we offer:
- Health & Wellbeing: Private medical insurance with the option to add your family, Digital GP appointments, market‑leading family policies, mental health support, discounted gym memberships, dental insurance, and more.
- Spend & Save: Annual bonus scheme split between personal and business objectives, recognition with reward platform, up to 7% matched pension contributions, 15% Ocado discount, 20% M&S discount, free breakfast every day in the office, electric vehicle leasing scheme and free shuttle bus from Hatfield station to the office.
- Never miss the moments that matter: Blended/Hybrid working, 26 days holiday plus 8 flexible bank holidays, options to buy an extra holiday, 2 weeks work from anywhere, and lifestyle break opportunities.
Everyone’s welcome. We’re an equal opportunities employer. That means we make sure all potential colleagues are treated fairly and equally. If you require reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please let us know on the application form.
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