The freedom to discover

Tube Lines is a leading player in one of the largest capital investment programmes in transport anywhere in the world, and the largest improvement programme the Tube has ever seen.

Our two-year engineering programmes (three years for civil engineering) and our two-year commercial schemes are tailored precisely to individual needs. Both begin with an induction to give graduates an overview of the business and the schemes, along with an appreciation of our culture and values.

You will then experience four to six monitored placements in different areas of the business. Graduates in many organisations spend the duration of their training scheme in the same area, but our aim is to give you all-round knowledge of the business and a clear insight into where your strengths and interests lie, with a view to future specialisation. But whatever placements you take, we can guarantee that you will be working on large-scale projects from the outset – mostly working during the daytime at our Canary Wharf head office, although since the Underground is a 24-hour operation, there will be occasional night-time site visits depending on your role.

We have invested £25m in training and developing our employees, and full mentoring, coaching and training will be given to complement the practical experience you gain. We really can offer you the best of both worlds: personal responsibility for delivering projects, but a large support network of world-class engineers, project managers and other professionals to help you develop your leadership potential.

Select the programme that is of interest to you:

Civil Engineering

We offer three years' structured development consisting of a series of placements, which normally last between three and six months. These are specifically designed to provide exposure to a variety of projects including a stream that focuses on track, so that we can offer the best opportunities for your development. Two examples of projects on which current graduates have been engaged are:

Structural Assessments

There is an agreed programme for Structural Assessments that have to be carried out. After site visits to take measurements and supporting photographs, a series of calculations were performed to ensure the structures were compliant with regulations and tolerances. This was followed up by a formal report prepared by the graduate.

Kilburn Station

The project involved viaduct strengthening work at Kilburn Station. The role included managing the contractors on site, ensuring that they performed the work to specification, then dealing with any variations and claims. The Resident Site Engineer has responsibility for site safety, which included undertaking inspections and checking that permits and any other relevant documentation was in order.

Career development

To assist your progress on both the work and academic front, you will be assigned a mentor experienced in civil engineering. We will enthusiastically encourage and support you in your achievement of further professional development. Regular performance reviews and quarterly reports will monitor your progress and ensure the training is of positive benefit to both you and the business. There are also opportunities to meet up with other graduates at a formal quarterly forum, where senior managers from across the business make themselves available to answer questions.

After the three years...

While you may already have an idea of the specific area that you would ultimately like to specialise in, the scheme gives you the opportunity to experience different aspects of engineering work which may affect your decision. During your final six months on the scheme, you will consolidate your work experience and professional development. You will discuss with your mentor and agree on the best placement to continue your career with us.

Electrical Engineering

We offer two years' structured development consisting of a series of placements, which normally last between three and six months. These are specifically designed to provide exposure to a variety of projects, so that we can offer the best opportunities for your development.

Two examples of projects on which recent graduates have been engaged are:

Jubilee line signals

As part of the Jubilee signals team, the graduate looked at the reliability of Automatic Train Operation (ATO) units on the fleet of trains using the line. Analysis showed that six ATOs were faulty, each having at least 10 associated failures. It was recommended that these ATOs be taken out of service. Consequently, ATO-related failures dropped by 25% and the average lost customer hours incurred because of ATO failures was reduced by £3,886 per month.

Station modernisation and enhancement

As part of the Comms team within Front End Engineering & Design, the graduate audited designs submitted by contractors for a station modernisation and enhancement project. Auditing designs is a hugely challenging task; not only do the designs have to be inspected in great detail to ensure they conform to the highest standards, the views of the client have to be taken into account. The graduate then managed the contractors in the delivery of the designed solutions.

Career development

To assist your progress on both the work and academic front, you will be assigned a mentor experienced in electrical engineering. We will enthusiastically encourage and support you in your achievement of further professional development. Regular performance reviews and quarterly reports will monitor your progress and ensure the training is of positive benefit to both you and the business. There are also opportunities to meet up with other graduates at a formal quarterly forum, where senior managers from across the business make themselves available to answer questions.

After the two years...

While you may already have an idea of the specific area in which you would ultimately like to specialise, the scheme gives you the opportunity to experience different aspects of engineering work which may affect your decision. During your final six months on the scheme, you will consolidate your work experience and professional development. You will discuss with your mentor and agree on the best placement to continue your career with us.

Mechanical Engineering

We offer two years' structured development consisting of a series of placements, which normally last between three and six months. These are specifically designed to provide exposure to a variety of projects, so that we can offer the best opportunities for your development.

Two examples of projects on which recent graduates have been engaged are:

Step-free access

The graduate was solely responsible for stage 3 mechanical services design for step-free access projects at Kingsbury and Wood Green, carrying the concept through to completion. The graduate's work involved designing and implementing amendments to existing station, extract and ventilation systems, making modifications to existing station domestic water services layouts and providing comfort cooling.

Tunnel temperatures

Once upgrade work on the Northern line is complete, tunnel temperatures are likely to rise owing to the higher frequency of services, affecting passenger comfort. The graduate is helping to establish how great this effect will be. This involves sourcing a baseline set of data prior to the work being completed, and placing data loggers on platforms, in ticket halls and in sections of tunnel throughout central London. Data from the loggers is downloaded during night shifts, analysed and then produced in a written report.

Career development

To assist your progress on both the work and academic front, you will be assigned a mentor experienced in mechanical engineering. We will enthusiastically encourage and support you in your achievement of further professional development. Regular performance reviews and quarterly reports will monitor your progress and ensure the training is of positive benefit to both you and the business. There are also opportunities to meet up with other graduates at a formal quarterly forum, where senior managers from across the business make themselves available to answer questions.

After the two years...

While you may already have an idea of the specific area that you would ultimately like to specialise in, the scheme gives you the opportunity to experience different aspects of engineering work which may affect your decision. During your final six months on the scheme, you will consolidate your work experience and professional development. You will discuss with your mentor and agree on the best placement to continue your career with us.

Commercial

We offer two years' structured development consisting of a series of placements, which normally last between three and six months. These are specifically designed to provide exposure to a variety of projects, so that we can offer the best opportunities for your development.

Recent graduates have been engaged on a variety of projects. Here's just one example...

Preparation of business cases

It is important that any investment decisions we make are based on sound business rationale. We have to demonstrate that the assets deliver the required function and level of performance in terms of service, in a sustainable manner, at an optimal whole life cost and without compromising health, safety, environmental performance or the organisation's reputation.

Business cases require that reports are prepared using all relevant information, so that a decision can be made as to whether a project should be approved. Two examples undertaken by graduates are:

• The upgrade of services at Leicester Square Station, where a systematic review of the problem and the trade off between operational maintenance and capital costs needed to be understood before funding could be secured.
• Replacement of alarm monitoring systems on the new section of the Jubilee line, where it was necessary to understand the legacy systems and alternative technology and suggest innovative solutions.

Career development

To assist your progress on both the work and academic front, you will be assigned a mentor experienced in the commercial discipline. We will enthusiastically encourage and support you in your achievement of further professional development. Regular performance reviews and quarterly reports will monitor your progress and ensure the training is of positive benefit to both you and the business. There are also opportunities to meet up with other graduates at a formal quarterly forum, where senior managers from across the business make themselves available to answer questions.

After the two years...

While you may already have an idea of the specific area that you would ultimately like to specialise in, the scheme gives you the opportunity to experience different aspects of business planning which may affect your decision. During your final six months on the scheme, you will consolidate your work experience and professional development. You will discuss with your mentor and agree on the best placement to continue your career with us.

Human Factors

We offer two years' structured development consisting of a series of placements, which normally last between three and six months. These are specifically designed to provide exposure to a variety of projects allowing you to gain a broad understanding of how all areas of Human Factors are applied across our projects.

Examples of projects on which current graduates have been engaged are:

Jubilee line signalling upgrade

A new moving block automated train signalling system is being installed on the Jubilee line. This system will reduce the gaps between trains allowing a faster service with a higher capacity on our network. This project has involved carrying out workload assessments, recording situational awareness scores and facilitating usability workshops in operational simulations of the new signalling system.

Stations

We are working on the design of London Underground stations and signalling control rooms to facilitate safe and effective designs for London Underground and Tube Lines employees. This means understanding how people physically and mentally interact with their workplace and associated equipment through a series of assessments to ensure designs are to fit both the requirements of the role and the limitations of the users.

Career development

To assist your progress on both the work and academic fronts, you will be assigned a mentor experienced in the Human Factors discipline. We will enthusiastically encourage and support you in achieving further professional development.

Regular performance reviews and quarterly reports will monitor your progress and ensure the training is of positive benefit to both you and the business.

There are also opportunities to meet up with other graduates at a formal quarterly forum, where senior managers from across the business make themselves available to answer questions.

After the two years...

While you may already have an idea of the specific area that you would ultimately like to specialise in, the scheme gives you the opportunity to experience different aspects of human factors work which may affect your decision. During your final six months on the scheme, you will consolidate your work experience and professional development. You will discuss with your mentor and agree on the best placement to continue your career with us.