The majority of UK graduate schemes accept any degree subject. Finance, consulting, HR, marketing, retail, and public sector schemes all recruit from any discipline. Engineering and technology schemes often require relevant STEM degrees. Law requires a law degree or GDL conversion. Your degree subject matters far less than your grade, work experience, and application quality.
The assumption that graduate schemes are only for certain degree subjects is one of the most damaging myths in graduate recruitment. History graduates work at Goldman Sachs. Philosophy graduates run rotations at Unilever. English graduates join the Civil Service Fast Stream. This guide gives you the specific picture — which schemes are genuinely open to any degree, which have preferences, and which do have hard requirements.
The three categories of degree requirement
Finance (retail banking, Big Four), consulting, HR, marketing, FMCG, retail, public sector, media. The majority of graduate scheme places in the UK sit here.
Engineering schemes (BAE, Rolls Royce, Network Rail), most technology developer roles, data science tracks, and some actuarial programmes.
Law training contracts (law degree or GDL), some medicine-adjacent NHS roles, and specialist scientific positions in pharma (AstraZeneca, GSK lab roles).
Even within "STEM preferred" schemes, the requirement is often softer than stated. BAE Systems and Network Rail both accept strong candidates from non-STEM backgrounds for commercial and project management rotations. Always read the specific stream requirements, not just the headline.
Which major schemes explicitly accept any degree?
The table below covers the major UK graduate schemes and their actual degree requirements — not what the careers pages imply, but what they state directly:
| Employer / Scheme | Degree requirement | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Civil Service Fast Stream | Any degree | One of the UK's most explicitly degree-blind schemes. Assessment is entirely competency-based. |
| NHS Management Training | Any degree | A clinical or science degree is an advantage for some streams but not required. |
| Barclays | Any degree | Technology stream prefers STEM but does not exclude others. |
| NatWest | Any degree | No subject restrictions across all streams. |
| Santander | Any degree | Strong any-degree scheme with accessible competition ratios. |
| KPMG | Any degree | No subject requirement. Some streams (tech) prefer STEM but don't exclude. |
| Deloitte | Any degree | Explicitly states degree subject is not a factor in selection. |
| PwC | Any degree | No subject requirement. Tech consulting stream has a STEM preference. |
| Accenture | Any degree | Technology roles prefer STEM. Business, consulting and strategy streams are fully open. |
| Unilever | Any degree | Has dropped degree classification requirements entirely — assessed on strengths only. |
| P&G | Any degree | Brand management and commercial streams fully open. R&D requires science degree. |
| Diageo | Any degree | Commercial, HR, and marketing streams all open. |
| M&S | Any degree | Retail management and commercial schemes explicitly open to all subjects. |
| Aldi | Any degree | Area manager scheme takes any degree. One of the higher-paying retail schemes. |
| John Lewis / Waitrose | Any degree | Commercial and operations schemes open to all subjects. |
| Sky | Any degree | Technology stream prefers STEM. All other streams fully open. |
| McKinsey | Any degree | Actively recruits from humanities and social sciences. Degree subject irrelevant. |
| FCA | Any degree | Economics or finance degree useful but no subject requirement. |
| HM Treasury | Any degree | Economics background an advantage but explicitly not required. |
| BAE Systems | STEM preferred | Engineering and technical streams require STEM. Commercial stream is more flexible. |
| Rolls Royce | STEM required | Engineering degree required for the main graduate programme. |
| Network Rail | STEM preferred | Engineering streams require relevant degree. Project management streams are more open. |
| STEM preferred | SWE roles require CS/engineering. Business and sales roles are open. | |
| Clifford Chance | Law or GDL | Training contract requires law degree or completed GDL conversion. |
| Freshfields | Law or GDL | Non-law graduates must complete GDL before applying for training contract. |
What your specific degree actually gets you
Accepting any degree and having no preference are different things. Here is an honest breakdown of how common degree disciplines map to graduate scheme opportunities — including where they genuinely help and where they create no advantage:
Strong fit: Civil Service Fast Stream, consulting (MBB and Big Four), HR, marketing, retail management, media schemes (BBC, ITV, Penguin). Humanities degrees are valued for written communication and analytical thinking — both explicitly assessed in Fast Stream and consulting applications.
Avoid targeting: engineering schemes, technology developer roles, actuarial programmes.
Strong fit: retail banking, Big Four accounting, consulting, FMCG commercial, investment banking (for the application, not a requirement). Economics is genuinely useful background for finance schemes even where it's not required — assessors will probe commercial awareness more deeply.
No significant sectors to avoid — broad applicability.
Strong fit: HR schemes (CIPD fast-track, Unilever, Diageo), consulting (analytical and people-skills emphasis), public sector, retail. Psychology graduates perform well in assessment centres — understanding group dynamics and competency frameworks gives practical preparation advantages.
Engineering and technology developer tracks.
Strong fit: technology developer roles (Google, Amazon, BT, HMRC), engineering schemes (BAE, Rolls Royce, Network Rail), data analyst tracks at banks and consultancies. STEM graduates have the widest total range of options — any-degree schemes are still accessible, plus the restricted technical tracks.
No significant exclusions — full range available.
Strong fit: Civil Service Fast Stream (where PPE is arguably overrepresented), policy roles, public sector, HM Treasury, FCA, consulting. PPE graduates are disproportionately successful in Fast Stream applications — but this creates higher competition from within that degree background specifically.
Engineering and technical developer tracks.
Strong fit: pharma schemes (AstraZeneca, GSK, Pfizer — where science degree is often required), engineering schemes where physics is accepted, consulting (analytical skills valued), Big Four (no restriction). Sellafield and National Grid both value physics and chemistry backgrounds explicitly.
No significant exclusions — broad access plus specialist routes.
"The degree subject question comes up constantly, and my answer is always the same: for the majority of graduate schemes, what you studied is far less important than what you can demonstrate you've done with it. A history graduate who can write a compelling analysis of a business problem, draw on relevant examples, and articulate their thinking clearly will outperform an economics graduate who can't structure an argument. The application process is designed to test skills, not knowledge."
The schemes that have dropped degree classifications entirely
A growing number of employers have gone further than accepting any degree subject — they've removed degree classification requirements entirely, assessing candidates purely on competency and strengths. These are worth knowing about explicitly:
Unilever was one of the first major FMCG employers to drop degree classification requirements from its Future Leaders Programme. Applications are assessed on strengths, not grades. Dyson similarly assesses on demonstrated skills rather than classification. Penguin Random House removed degree requirements entirely from some publishing roles — not just the classification, but the degree itself. EY removed UCAS point requirements and some grade thresholds as part of a broader contextual hiring push.
This trend is expanding, not contracting. If you have a 2:2 or are concerned about your grade, it's worth checking each employer's current requirements directly rather than assuming the standard 2:1 threshold applies universally.
"I did a fine art degree and genuinely assumed graduate schemes weren't for me — I thought they were for finance and business students. A careers advisor mentioned the Civil Service Fast Stream accepts any degree and I looked into it more. The whole application process is about how you think and how you communicate, not what you studied. I got through to the final stage on my first application and got an offer on my second."
What matters more than your degree subject
For any-degree schemes, the selection criteria that actually determine outcomes are: your grade (2:1 is standard, some accept 2:2 with context), your work experience and how you describe it, your performance in online tests and assessment centres, and the quality of your written application answers. None of these are determined by what you studied.
Commercial awareness is the one area where degree subject creates a genuine gap. Economics and business graduates arrive with baseline commercial literacy that humanities students sometimes lack. The fix is straightforward: read industry-specific news for four to six weeks before your applications and develop a view on the commercial challenges facing your target employer. It's a gap that's entirely closable with deliberate preparation.
"If I'm being direct about what moves the needle: the candidates who win offers at any-degree schemes are the ones who prepare the application most thoroughly, not the ones with the most relevant degree. I've seen philosophy graduates outperform finance graduates at Big Four assessment centres because they'd practised more, researched the employer more carefully, and built stronger examples. The degree is the ticket to apply — after that it's irrelevant."
If you want to go into law without a law degree
Law is the one sector where your degree genuinely does restrict access — but the restriction is not absolute. Non-law graduates can qualify as solicitors via the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL), a one-year conversion course that covers the seven foundations of legal knowledge. Most magic circle and US law firms actively recruit non-law graduates and fund the GDL as part of the training contract offer.
The timeline looks like this: complete your non-law degree, apply for vacation schemes in your final year (firms recruit non-law students at this stage), receive a training contract offer conditional on completing the GDL, complete the GDL (one year, usually funded by the firm), then start the training contract. The path is longer but it's a well-established route — non-law graduates make up a significant proportion of trainees at most major law firms.
FAQs on degree requirements for graduate schemes
Yes. Retail banking schemes (Barclays, NatWest, Santander, Lloyds) and Big Four accounting schemes (KPMG, Deloitte, PwC, EY) explicitly accept any degree subject. Investment banking schemes at JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs also accept any degree, though the competition is extreme and candidates from economics, maths, and finance backgrounds are overrepresented. Having a non-finance degree does not disqualify you — but you'll need to demonstrate commercial awareness through your application answers and interview preparation.
No — and this is one of the most misunderstood things about consulting recruitment. McKinsey, BCG, and Bain actively recruit from humanities, social sciences, and STEM equally. What matters is your analytical ability, structured communication, and performance in the case interview — none of which are determined by degree subject. Big Four advisory (Deloitte, KPMG, Accenture) is the same. The only consulting-adjacent route where degree matters is actuarial — where a maths or statistics background is typically required.
For most engineering scheme streams — no. BAE Systems, Rolls Royce, and Network Rail require an engineering, physics, or relevant STEM degree for their technical rotations. However, commercial, project management, and business streams within these same employers are often more flexible. BAE Systems' commercial graduate scheme, for example, is open to non-STEM backgrounds. Check each stream individually rather than assuming the whole scheme is off limits.
Less than it used to. Most major employers have removed university name or ranking as a formal screening criterion — Deloitte, KPMG, and PwC explicitly don't filter by university. Investment banking and MBB consulting are the exception: in practice, a significant proportion of hires still come from a small group of target universities, even where official policy states otherwise. For the vast majority of graduate schemes, your university name is far less important than your grade, your work experience, and how well you perform in the process.
A growing number of employers now consider 2:2 graduates, particularly with relevant experience or under contextual admissions policies. Unilever and Dyson have dropped classification requirements entirely. EY has removed some grade thresholds. The Civil Service Fast Stream considers contextual factors. Most retail and commercial schemes are more flexible than finance and consulting on grade requirements. If you have a 2:2, target employers who explicitly state flexibility, be transparent in your application, and let your experience and assessment performance do the work.
Yes — via the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL), a one-year conversion course. Most major law firms recruit non-law graduates for vacation schemes and training contracts, then fund the GDL as part of the offer. Non-law graduates make up a substantial proportion of trainees at magic circle and US law firms. You need to apply for vacation schemes in your final year just as law graduates do — the process and timeline are identical, you just have an extra year of GDL between offer and start date.