By Andre Atallah, CEO of EP Advisory
Mergers & Acquisitions graduate · London, Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham · September 2027 start
Closes Mon 26 Oct (may close early)Deadline was set for 26 Oct 2026Missed it? Your options
Short answer: Apply now. Deloitte moved most M&A deadlines to Monday 26 October 2026. Three ads say 10:00 GMT, and any may close early.This year’s last M&A deadlines were set for Monday 26 October 2026. The next cycle is likely to open in early October 2027. Pick one team and one office. Then come Deloitte’s online assessment and a Job Simulation. The final stage is in person, about 2.5 hours. You discuss a topic you researched with AI, then sit an interview. There is no case study.
Where are you now?
Independent guide. EP Advisory is not affiliated with Deloitte.
Deloitte’s Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) practice hires graduates into eight teams, across four UK offices.
This playbook covers each stage, the tests and the visa rules, including for international students. For nearly 10 years, we’ve helped more than 5,000 professionals get hired. Want to know if your CV will pass screening in the UK? Check your CV for free: a score in 30 seconds, then a fix for each problem.
01/10
Your route to an offer
Pick your stage and tick each step when done. Dates are Deloitte’s. Prep times are ours.
1. Apply: closes Monday 26 October 20261. Apply (deadline was set for Monday 26 October 2026)
One online form, about 15 minutes. Apply now. Most ads close on Monday 26 October. Three say 10:00 GMT, the rest give no time.This year’s last deadlines were set for Monday 26 October. The next cycle is likely to open in early October 2027.
2. Online tests: reply within 4 weeks
Online assessment, then Job Simulation. Prep 1 to 2 weeks.
3. Final stage prep: two hours on one topic
Research one topic with AI, then prepare for the interview. Prep about 1 week.
4. Final day and offer: in person, at your office
2.5 hours at the office on your ad. Prep 1 to 2 days.
Your ticks save on this device.
02/10
The role at a glance
One M&A graduate scheme, entered through one team.
26 Oct
Closing date, may close earlyThis year’s last deadline
Sep 2027
Start date
2:1
Minimum degree, any subject
3 years
Rotation scheme, in most teams
One
Application a year, across Deloitte
Not published
Salary
How the rotation works
You start in your home team. Then you rotate through two other M&A teams. You return home at the end.
Your qualification
The ACA, the chartered accountancy qualification, for most teams. Valuations uses the CFAB, then the CFA. Three teams use CIMA. Deloitte pays the fees.
Where these facts come from
- The rotation. The Corporate Finance ad: “our three-year M&A rotation graduate scheme”. The Valuations, M&A Technology and Sports ads do not mention rotations.
- Qualifications. CIMA, the management accountancy qualification, is for Deal Transformation, M&A Technology and Sports. Deloitte covers “all mandated courses, permitted exam attempts and membership fees” (Candidate Zone).
- Salary. Deloitte’s FAQ gives no figure. Graduates can get “up to a £7,000 interest-free loan” (benefits page).
03/10
What Deloitte M&A looks for
Deloitte scores 10 core skills across its early careers roles. For M&A, know your team’s work and its qualification.
Motivated & Committed
Why M&A, why your team and why its qualification.
Learning Oriented
A skill you learned fast.
Tech Curious
A tool you tried and what it changed.
Relationship Builder
Trust you built with a new group.
Effective Communicator
A complex idea you made simple.
Resilient & Adaptable
A plan that failed and how you recovered.
Focused & Efficient
A tight deadline you met.
Analytical
Numbers you checked and turned into a decision.
Creative Problem Solver
A new fix for an old problem.
Cognitive Ability
Tested by the numerical and verbal modules.
What each team does, in Deloitte’s words
- Corporate Finance. Debt advice, M&A advice and restructuring.
- Transaction Services. “both due diligence and other post deal advisory services”.
- Business Valuations. “We challenge management assumptions and plans”.
- M&A Analytics. Business analysts, data scientists and deal specialists in one team.
- M&A Technology. “technology and AI due diligence”, plus “Day 1 preparations”.
- Deal Transformation & Post Merger Integration. Advice “on integrations and separations”.
- Resolution & Recovery. “specialist advice to support the stability of banks and capital markets”.
- Sports Business Group. Works “exclusively on sports projects”.
From Deloitte’s Advisory page and the ads.
04/10Stage 1 · Apply
How to apply
Apply now. Deloitte moved most deadlines to Monday 26 October 2026. On 21 October 2026, six ads gave this date and four had closed. Three say 10:00 GMT. Any ad may close early.This year’s ads have closed. The last deadlines were set for Monday 26 October 2026. Three gave a closing time of 10:00 GMT. The next cycle is likely to open in early October 2027.
1
Fill the form
About 15 minutes, in one sitting
2
Keep your ID
Quote it when you contact Deloitte
3
Online assessment
Deadline comes by email
4
Job Simulation
Replies within 4 weeks
New for 2026-27
Business Valuations takes any degree subject. Last cycle, Valuation & Modelling asked for a STEM (science, technology, engineering or maths) degree.
Deloitte asks you to use AI for your topic research and to explain how you used it.
Sources: the ads and the 2025 Valuation & Modelling ad.
More on the form and the one-application rule
- One application. The ads and Deloitte’s timelines page state “a strict one application per year policy”. You cannot transfer it to another team.
- The form. “complete your online application form in one session, as it won’t save your progress”.
- Emails. Use a personal email. Add [email protected] to your safe senders.
- Your grades. If something affected your results, send evidence early.
- Adjustments. Ask early. Online tests can include extra time.
This cycle’s 11 M&A ads
Choose one team and one office. The office also decides whether Deloitte can sponsor your visa.
| Team | Office and visa | ClosesDeadline |
|---|---|---|
| Corporate Finance | London, can sponsor | Closed by 21 Oct 2026 |
| Business Valuations | London, can sponsor | 19 Oct, 10:00 BSTDeadline was set for 19 Oct, 10:00 BST |
| Deal Transformation & Post Merger Integration | London, can sponsor | Closed by 21 Oct 2026 |
| M&A Analytics | London, can sponsor | Closed by 21 Oct 2026 |
| M&A Technology | London, can sponsor | 26 Oct, check the ad |
| Resolution & Recovery | London, can sponsor | 26 Oct, 10:00 GMT |
| Transaction Services | Leeds, can sponsor | 26 Oct, no time given |
| M&A Analytics | Manchester, cannot sponsor | 26 Oct, 10:00 GMT |
| Sports Business Group | Manchester, cannot sponsor | Closed by 21 Oct 2026 |
| Transaction Services | Manchester, cannot sponsor | 26 Oct, no time given |
| Transaction Services | Birmingham, cannot sponsor | 26 Oct, 10:00 GMT |
From each ad, 14 October 2026, checked again on 21 October 2026. Can sponsor means the ad accepts Student visa holders. No London Transaction Services ad is listed this cycle. Graduating in 2028? The M&A Technology Summer Vacation Scheme runsran in London in June 2027. It also closes on 19 October.Its deadline was set for 19 October.
Your CV: do and don’t
Do
“Rebuilt a student society’s budget in Excel and found £2,000 of savings”
Show analysis that led to a result. Give each role a number.
Don’t
“Passionate about finance and deals”
A claim with no proof. Show the work instead.
Our CV achievement examples show how to write those lines. Getting ready to apply for jobs in the UK? Check your CV for free: see it the way a recruiter does, then fix each problem.
Save Deloitte and over 2,000 other UK schemes to one free calendar. See what closes next and what you have applied to.
Track my schemes freeFree account, no card.
Missed it or not selected? Your options
- 23 Oct 2026. Finance Transformation Consulting closes.Finance Transformation Consulting was listed to close. It is Consulting, not M&A, with the ACA or CIMA. London ads: Business Analyst and Controllership & Treasury. Only if you have not used your one application.
- 9 Nov 2026. Spring into Deloitte: Advisory opens, for first-years.opened, for first-years. It runsran in London on 1 April and 2 April 2027. Applications close once places are filled.
- Early Oct 2027, likely. The next graduate window.The expected next graduate window. Check Deloitte’s timelines page for the new dates. Advisory roles opened on 6 October 2025 and 5 October 2026. Deloitte says “you’re welcome to reapply”.
05/10Stage 2 · Online tests
The Deloitte online tests
Two online stages, both built for Deloitte by Cappfinity. You hear back within four weeks of each.
Immersive Online AssessmentAbout 65 minutes
Welcome and Integrity · Behavioural · Numerical · Verbal
Job SimulationAbout 45 to 60 minutes
Ranking · Best response · Written · Video
The tests are the same for every M&A team. No M&A ad names a technical, modelling or Excel test.
About 35 min
Behavioural, untimed
About 12 min
Numerical, speed counts
About 12 min
Verbal, speed counts
In numerical and verbal, “the time you take will impact your score” (assessment page). The Job Simulation is “designed for the pathway you have applied to” (Candidate Zone).
Step through Deloitte’s online tests
Numerical: speed counts
Read the instructions
The test opens with instructions. In the practice version the clock counts the time you take rather than counting down, and speed counts towards your score. Employers set their own version, so yours may differ.
Rank the options
Work out the answer from a table, then drag the options into order. A Time Taken clock runs at the top.
Type the answer
Some questions have no options. Work out the figure from the chart and type it into the answer box.
Your moves
- Keep a calculator, pen and paper to hand, as Deloitte recommends.
- Check each answer before you press submit. You cannot go back.
Verbal: speed counts
Match the reply to a message
Each module tests a different verbal skill. Here you drag each reply under the message it best answers, judging only the style. Employers set their own version, so yours may differ.
Complete the text
A short passage has gaps. Choose the right word for each gap from a small drop-down list.
Correct the paragraph
A short notice contains spelling, grammar and punctuation errors. Click into the paragraph and fix them.
Rank the replies
Read how a team replied to an idea. Drag the five replies into order, from most positive to least positive.
True, false or can’t say
Read a short passage. For each statement, choose True, False or Can’t say from a drop-down, based only on the passage.
Your moves
- For true, false or can’t say, use only what the passage states.
- Read the whole paragraph before you fix errors.
Behavioural: untimed
The written screen belongs to the Job Simulation. These screens follow Cappfinity’s practice player, so Deloitte’s real screens may look a little different.
Read the welcome page
A welcome page explains the assessment and gives a few tips. Press Continue to start. Employers set their own version, so yours may differ.
Rank the responses
A short work scenario comes with four possible actions. Drag them into order, from the one you would most likely take to the least likely.
Move the slider
Some questions ask where you sit between two views. Drag the handle along the scale, and a box above it shows what you picked.
Pick the best response
A scenario comes with four responses. Pick the one you think is most appropriate, then save and go on.
Write your answer
Some questions ask for a written answer. These can be timed, and a counter shows how many characters you have left.
Your moves
- “Go with your gut instinct”, as Deloitte’s recruiters advise.
- Type every word yourself. Pasting is blocked and there is no spellcheck.
Video: Job Simulation
The Job Simulation also asks for recorded video answers. We do not draw these screens.
- First a set-up clip, which you can record again.
- Each question gives you time to prepare.
- Answer in English. Assessed answers cannot be re-recorded.
Your moves
- Try the Candidate Zone’s practice Job Simulation first.
- Tell your housemates, to avoid what Deloitte calls “a cameo appearance”.
Our own simplified drawings of Cappfinity’s practice screens, not screenshots. Numbers on them are examples. Deloitte’s version may differ.
For more on reasoning questions, see our tips for psychometric tests.
The rules: allowed and banned
Allowed
- A calculator, pen and paper
- Breaks, within a 5-hour cap
- Practice in the Candidate Zone
- Adjustments, if you ask early
Banned
- AI tools, in either online stage
- Help from anyone else
- Pasting text into written answers
- Sharing questions, including with AI
From Deloitte’s integrity page. Deloitte has “measures in place to detect AI-generated or AI-assisted responses”. It “may also report this to your educational institution”.
On the day: integrity, order and going back
- Integrity first. You record an integrity statement on camera first. The three modules then go in any order.
- No going back. “Once you have submitted your answer to a question, you cannot then go back and change it”. Cappfinity’s free demo has a Previous button. Deloitte’s real test does not.
Go further: the best outside help
Our own picks, checked on 14 October 2026. We are not linked to any of these sites and earn nothing from them.
From Deloitte
- Deloitte’s Candidate ZoneDeloitte · free account neededDeloitte’s own practice for both online stages. Start here.Free
Practise
- Cappfinity’s Preparation HubCappfinity, the test maker · no account neededExplains each question type in plain words.Free
- Cappfinity’s practice demosCappfinity · no account neededShort demos. Skip critical reasoning, which Deloitte does not use.Free
- Capp-style verbal sample testAssessmentDay · guide updated Sep 2026 · no account neededMore verbal questions in the same five types.Free
- Capp-style numerical sample testAssessmentDay · no account neededExtra numerical practice.Free
Skip answer solvers and paid insight packs. Deloitte bans AI in its tests and says paid insights “may be misleading or inaccurate”.
Next: build your speed on numbers and words with our guide to psychometric and logic tests.
06/10Stage 3 · Interviews
The topic discussion and interview
Two exercises, on one in-person day at your office. Managers, directors and sometimes partners from your team assess you.
Topic discussionA 30 to 45 minute session
About 15 minutes of your findings · Then questions · No slides
Skills and motivation interviewAbout 50 minutes, up to an hour
Motivation · Past examples · Scenarios · Values
Deloitte asks you to use AI for your topic research and to explain how you used it. AI is banned in the interviews themselves.
No case study, modelling test or technical interview is published for any M&A team.
Your mandatory preparation and the timings
- The task. Choose one of the topics Deloitte gives you and spend up to two hours on it. “you don’t need to prepare slides”.
- The topics. The Advisory topics in Deloitte’s Candidate Zone are not about deals or M&A.
- What to explain. Why you chose it, your approach, and how you used AI and “what value it added”.
- Optional. An Analysis Template and a worked example.
How to answer: Deloitte’s own frames
The topic discussion
Deloitte’s Discussion Guide suggests this shape for your 15 minutes. It says there is “no right way”.
1
Introduce
2 min: purpose and key points
2
Implications
4 min: positive and negative
3
Opportunities and risks
4 min: both sides
4
For Deloitte
3 min: business opportunities
5
Conclude
2 min: why it matters
Deloitte adds: “If you don’t know an answer, it’s okay to say so.”
Past examples
Deloitte’s guide says STAR “only works when talking about a previous example”.
Situation
Set the scene in one or two lines.
Task
What you had to achieve.
Action
What you did, not the team.
Result
What changed, with a number.
Motivation
Deloitte’s guide names three areas, plus your own questions.
The area
Why M&A, and why your team.
The firm
What you know about Deloitte.
Your career
How your goals fit its work.
Your questions
What you want to know about the role.
See our guides on how to pass a job interview and the toughest interview questions.
Practise: one question at a time
Motivation questions
Topics from Deloitte’s Interview Guide. The last card quotes it. Answers are ours.
The area
Why do you want to join this M&A team?
What they’re testing: that you know what your team does.
Show a strong answer
- Name one piece of work from the team’s own description. Link it to something you have done.
Qualification
Why do you want to train for the qualification on your ad?
What they’re testing: that you know what the study involves.
Show a strong answer
- Say what it covers and how it helps the team’s work. Show how you will make time to study.
The firm
Why Deloitte, and not another firm?
What they’re testing: real research, not a slogan.
Show a strong answer
- Use one thing you read or heard from Deloitte, and say why it mattered.
Your questions
“What aspects of the role and responsibilities do you want to know more about?”
From Deloitte’s Interview Guide
Show a strong answer
- Ask about your team’s work or training, not facts the ad already gives.
Past example questions
The first card is Deloitte’s own. The third is based on Deloitte’s values question. The others are ours.
Past example
“Tell me about a time you had to work collaboratively with others to achieve a goal”
Deloitte’s own example question
Show a strong answer
- Use STAR. Focus on your part and end with a number.
Analytical
Tell me about a time you found a problem in some numbers.
What they’re testing: care with detail, which deal work needs.
Show a strong answer
- What looked wrong, how you checked it, what you changed and the result.
Values
How do you support the people around you?
What they’re testing: Deloitte’s value of looking out for each other.
Show a strong answer
- Name one habit, then a time it helped someone.
Resilient
Tell me about a time a plan failed and how you recovered.
What they’re testing: Resilient & Adaptable, one of Deloitte’s 10 core skills.
Show a strong answer
- Say what went wrong, what you changed and the result the second time.
Scenario and topic questions
The first two follow Deloitte’s guides. The others are ours.
Scenario
You built a new way for your team to report project progress. How would you present it to colleagues?
Based on Deloitte’s example question
Show a strong answer
- This is not STAR. Say who is in the room, what they care about and how you would take feedback.
Topic
“What research did you come across that you decided to discount?”
From Deloitte’s Discussion Guide
Show a strong answer
- Name one source and why you dropped it: too old, too small or one-sided.
AI
How did you use AI, and what value did it add?
What they’re testing: judgement with AI, not just use of it.
Show a strong answer
- What you asked it, what you checked elsewhere and one thing it got wrong.
Communicator
Explain what your M&A team does to someone outside business.
What they’re testing: Effective Communicator, one of Deloitte’s 10 core skills.
Show a strong answer
- Start from Deloitte’s line on your team. Then say it in everyday words.
Your story bank: a worksheet to print or copy
Two STAR stories per skill.
| Skill | Story 1 | Story 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Motivated & Committed | ||
| Learning Oriented | ||
| Tech Curious | ||
| Relationship Builder | ||
| Effective Communicator | ||
| Resilient & Adaptable | ||
| Focused & Efficient | ||
| Analytical | ||
| Creative Problem Solver |
Go further: the best outside help
Our own picks, checked on 14 October 2026. We are not linked to any of these sites and earn nothing from them.
From Deloitte
- Deloitte’s interview guideDeloitte · PDF · Oct 2025, updated Oct 2026 · no account neededEvery question type, with a real example of each.Free
- Deloitte’s topic discussion guideDeloitte · PDF · 2025 · no account neededHow to shape your 15 minutes of findings.Free
- What each M&A team doesDeloitte Careers · no account neededUse Deloitte’s words on your team.Free
- Where Deloitte allows AI, and where it bans itDeloitte Careers · no account neededCheck what is allowed before you start.Free
- Deloitte’s final stage videoDeloitte · in the Candidate Zone · free account neededA walk-through of the final stage day.Free
Practise
- What the ACA involvesICAEW, which awards the ACA · no account neededMost teams train you for it.Free
07/10Stage 4 · Final
The final stage day and your offer
The final stage lasts 2.5 hours, in person at the office on your ad.
Travel
A prepaid card for up to £150 arrives at least three days before. Wait for it before you book.
Arrive
Arrive 10 minutes early. Bring “paper and a pen”, plus notes to prompt you if you want.
Scoring
You are “benchmarked against criteria and skills, not other candidates on the day”.
Outcome
Deloitte sends feedback in the Candidate Zone, its “most detailed report to date”.
Offer checks and joining
- Checks. Your official degree results, plus Personal Independence checks.
- Timing. “We allow one month between your course completion date and your Deloitte start date”.
- Hotels. Not covered unless agreed in advance (travel guide). Its final stage checklist covers the rest.
Key dates: September 2027 intake
6 Oct 2025
Last cycle’s Advisory roles opened
5 Oct 2026
Advisory graduate roles opened
26 Oct 2026
Closing date for most ads. Three say 10:00 GMT
26 Oct 2026
Last deadline for this year’s ads. Three gave 10:00 GMT
Each online stage
Reply within four weeks
Each online stage
Reply within four weeks
Sep 2027
The programme starts
08/10
Visa sponsorship
Our reading: if you need a visa, you need a Student visa and a London or Leeds role. That was 7 of this cycle’s 11 ads. The Manchester and Birmingham ads cannot sponsor a visa.
Deloitte’s sponsorship page says your Student visa must be “valid within 3 months of your start date”. You “must be back in the UK by the beginning of August”.
More on each visa rule
- With an offer. The ads say “you must stay on your student visa until our immigration team contacts you c.3 months before start date”.
- Who cannot apply. Anyone who has “previously spent time on a Skilled Worker or Graduate visa”.
- Manchester and Birmingham. Their ads say “the salary for this role does not meet the minimum threshold required under the Immigration Rules for Skilled Worker visa sponsorship”.
- Rule changes. Deloitte may “revoke offers of employment” if Home Office changes make sponsorship unviable.
- Graduate visa. It lasts “2 years if you apply on or before 31 December 2026” and “18 months if you apply on or after 1 January 2027” (GOV.UK).
Need sponsorship? See our guides to UK companies that sponsor visas and staying in the UK after studying. This is general information, so check GOV.UK.
09/10
Key takeaways
Before you apply
- Apply now. Most ads close on Monday 26 October 2026, or earlier.This year’s last deadlines were set for Monday 26 October 2026. The next cycle is likely to open in early October 2027.
- Pick one team and one office. Deloitte allows one application a year.
- London and Leeds ads accept Student visa holders. Manchester and Birmingham ads cannot sponsor.
- Every team takes the same online assessment and Job Simulation.
- Use AI for your topic research, as Deloitte asks. Explain how you used it.
- The final stage is in person: a topic discussion, then an interview. There is no case study.
When a scheme gives a close date, we email you a few days before it closes. Save Deloitte once and the reminder is set.
Set my reminders freeFree account, no card.
10/10
Frequently asked questions
When does the Deloitte M&A graduate scheme close?
Most ads close on Monday 26 October 2026. Three of them say 10:00 GMT. Any ad may close early, so apply now.This year’s last deadlines were set for Monday 26 October 2026. Three ads gave a closing time of 10:00 GMT. The next cycle is likely to open in early October 2027.
Which M&A teams and offices can I apply to?
Six teams hire in London: Corporate Finance, Business Valuations, Deal Transformation, M&A Analytics, M&A Technology and Resolution & Recovery. Manchester has M&A Analytics, the Sports Business Group and Transaction Services. Transaction Services also hires in Leeds and Birmingham.
Can I apply to more than one M&A team?
No. Deloitte allows one early careers application a year. It will not move it to another team.
What qualification will I study?
The ACA for most teams. Business Valuations trains you for the CFAB, then the CFA. Deal Transformation, M&A Technology and the Sports Business Group use CIMA. Deloitte pays the fees.
Is there a technical or Excel test for Deloitte M&A?
No M&A ad names one. You take the same online tests as every Deloitte graduate. The final stage has no case study.
What happens at the final stage?
About 2.5 hours, in person at your office. You discuss a topic you researched with AI. Then you sit an interview of about 50 minutes.
Does Deloitte sponsor visas for M&A graduates?
The London and Leeds ads accept Student visa holders. Deloitte then sponsors a Skilled Worker visa. The Manchester and Birmingham ads cannot sponsor.
