How to impress Rolls-Royce recruiters with your online application

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The Rolls-Royce application form mostly involves selecting yes or no answers and filling out basic personal information, education history and details of your work experience. Most of your time, therefore, will be spent answering the following questions:

• You are applying to join one of our Early Careers Programmes at Rolls-Royce. Why do you want to start a career with us? (Specifically, we would like to understand what excites you about working at our organisation and in our industry. In addition, we would like to know about any interests or experiences you have that you think will help you perform well in the area of Rolls-Royce you are interested in.)
• At Rolls-Royce, we are passionate about continuous learning and believe it is important to 'Never stop growing'. Please share an example of something you've been learning outside of your formal studies or work experience. (Specifically, we would like to know why you decided to take this on, what you have enjoyed about this experience and what you have found challenging.)
• As a leading global technology company, we take our impact seriously. We are constantly innovating in order to address some of society's most pressing issues. With that in mind, what do you consider to be two of the most topical issues for us right now to focus on and why?

The point of these questions is to test your motivation, the level and quality of the research you’ve done, your self-awareness and your understanding of Rolls-Royce.

Find more advice for the engineering giant here.

Three things you must do before answering Rolls-Royce’s questions

These questions are asking for several different things. To answer them fully, you’ll need to:

1. research Rolls-Royce
2. research the programme you’ve applied to and pay particular attention to the skills needed
3. think of examples from your skills, work experience and extracurricular activities that make you suitable

Research Rolls-Royce to help you decide on your reasons

Some solid research into Rolls-Royce is key to answering these questions. Rolls-Royce’s corporate and careers websites are good places to start. You could look at:

• the areas that Rolls-Royce works in eg civil aerospace, defence, power systems and electrical
• its products and services
• recent developments or ongoing programmes
• its vision and strategy
• its research and technology priorities
• its values: trusted to deliver excellence, act with integrity and operate safely
• its behaviours: pursuing collaboration, seeking simplicity, embracing agility and being bold
• its investment in reducing environmental impact eg its Advance and Ultrafan engine designs.

While you’re doing your research, note down anything that particularly impresses you. For example, the culture at Rolls-Royce is one of innovation. It’s why Rolls-Royce’s products are as diverse as helicopter engines and nuclear submarine systems. Does this appeal to you? Which of Rolls-Royce’s products do you think are the most innovative? Have you ever done something different or thought outside of the box?

• discover the ins and outs of researching an employer for graduate job applications

Pay close attention to Rolls-Royce’s programme descriptions

You should also familiarise yourself with the programme description. Think about what you like about the role. Things to consider include:

• What is the structure of the scheme? It involves completing several 'gigs' – do you think this will suit you? Is there a business area in a particular area that you think you would enjoy?
• Is there professional development and mentoring on offer? Does this match with your career goals?
• What are the typical tasks you’ll be given? What projects could you work on?
• If there’s a lot of client contact, does this appeal to you? What experience with clients do you have? Rolls-Royce identifies customer satisfaction as one of its priorities. What skills and qualities do you have that would help you put Rolls-Royce’s customers first?
• The graduate scheme requires a willingness to be flexible around where you are based in the UK. In the future, you could have the chance to work internationally. That’s no surprise for a company whose client list reads like a global who’s who – Emirates, the U.S Department of Defense and British Airways for starters. Does this appeal to you?

Think about what Rolls-Royce’s graduate programme offers that you can’t get at a competitor, or even in a different industry altogether.

Think about what skills and experience you have that Rolls-Royce wants

Your answer to the first question will need to draw on your own skills, work experience and extracurricular activities to indicate your suitability for the scheme at Rolls-Royce. Before writing your answer, you might find it useful to create a list of everything you’ve done and consider how you could link each activity back to Rolls-Royce.

Rolls-Royce’s programme descriptions list some essential skills so it would be wise to show off these skills in your answer. For the engineering and technology graduate scheme, for example, Rolls-Royce is looking for initiative, collaboration and a creative approach to problem solving, to name a few.

Remember that Rolls-Royce is looking for graduates with leadership potential . Have you ever held a position of responsibility or volunteered to take the lead on a project? Explain what it involved and how you developed as a leader.

• learn how to demonstrate your leadership potential to Rolls-Royce recruiters

Don’t just list your skills and experiences – use them to show how you tick Rolls-Royce’s boxes

Avoid making unsubstantiated claims such as ‘I’m a confident decision maker’. This doesn’t give the recruiter any concrete evidence of your ability. Instead, write about a time when you made an important decision. What factors did you consider before reaching your conclusion? What was the reasoning behind your choice? Did anybody disagree with you – if so, how did you solve this?

Top tip: Remember to always link back to Rolls-Royce. Once you’ve finished writing your answers, it’s worth going back and reading over each point you make. Ask yourself: ‘Have I explained why this is relevant to Rolls-Royce?’

To do this, think of your experiences as selling points. How will they be of benefit to Rolls-Royce? Maybe you studied a relevant module at university. What did you enjoy about it and what did you learn? How does this make you a match with Rolls-Royce? Similarly, if you’ve completed any work experience in the business area you’ve applied for, relate it to what your role might entail at Rolls-Royce. How will you apply what you learned and the skills you developed during your work experience?

A good sentence might be something along the lines of: ‘I understand that I will be doing X. I have done Y which has developed my Z. This will help me deal with X.’ This not only highlights your own experience and skills but links back to Rolls-Royce and shows an understanding of the role you’ve applied for.

Check out these articles to learn how to demonstrate the skills sought by Rolls-Royce for its engineering and business and enterprise graduate programmes.

Bear in mind that Rolls-Royce doesn’t want:

1. Generic and clichéd responses , such as ‘I want to work for a firm that offers first-class engineering solutions’, particularly without following it up with some detail.
2. References to the luxury car brand . It isn’t linked to Rolls-Royce so don’t mention it.
3. Chunks of text copied from its website , eg writing ‘I want to work for a company that transforms the way we power, protect and connect people across the globe’ because you read it on the graduate recruitment website. A better answer would refer to past Rolls-Royce projects that have impacted society that you admired, and explain which of its current projects excite you and how your skills and experience will help you contribute.
4. Waffle . You’re given 300 words for each question (around three or four paragraphs or half a page of A4). Given everything the questions are asking, this isn’t a lot. You’ll need to show Rolls-Royce that you can summarise your reasons in the space you’ve been given so be concise and to the point; cut out any academic speech, unnecessary words and lengthy phrases or sentences.
5. A lack of detail . Take the less is more approach – far better to choose three solid reasons for wanting to work for Rolls-Royce and do them justice than cram in 20 points without expanding on them. Prioritise the points that you think are the most important to Rolls-Royce and best showcase your suitability and understanding of the role.

Top tip: consider using the three-step CAR technique (context, action and results) rather than the four-step STAR technique (situation, task, action and results) to keep your answers within the word limit.

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