Data Governance Graduate Programme

Data Governance Graduate Programme

This role will be based in our modern state-of-the-art co-working facilities in Moorgate, London. This site, at the heart of London provides fantastic amenities, support services and collaborative workspaces with convenient transport links.

We are a global biopharmaceutical leader committed to enhancing the lives of individuals through a diverse portfolio of prescription medicines, oncology treatments, life-saving vaccines, and animal health products. Our unwavering dedication to delivering innovative solutions is the driving force behind everything we do.

Join our Human Health International Data Strategy and Enablement team to support data strategy, governance, and enablement across multiple markets. You’ll work with cross-functional teams to translate business needs into data initiatives, support adoption of best practices, and help deliver scalable data solutions.

We’re hiring an ambitious graduate to join our International Data Strategy & Enablement team. This role sits at the crossroads of data, product, and operations. You’ll help create and operationalize data strategy across regions, improve data quality and governance, and enable functional teams to use data effectively. We’re looking for a curious, analytical self-starter comfortable working in agile teams who wants hands‑on experience growing their technical skills and contributing to organisation-wide data governance efforts.

Responsibilities:

Contribute to the development and execution of international data strategy and regional rollouts

Support data governance frameworks: cataloging, lineage, access controls, and policy documentation

Work with data engineers and analysts to define data model standards and measurement frameworks

Work with data stewards, data owners and technical SMEs to gather requirements and document relationships between business and technical assets.

Help create training material, run enablement sessions, and gather stakeholder feedback

Analyze regional gaps and recommend pragmatic solutions that balance local needs and global standards

Requirements:

• You must currently be at university and will be looking to complete a 12-month student internship as part of your undergraduate degree.
• Understanding of core data concepts: ETL, data models, metadata, data quality, and privacy basics
• Strong communication skills; experience working across cultures or international teams is a plus
• Problem-solving mindset, attention to detail, and willingness to learn
• Comfortable with ambiguity and able to operate in a fast-moving environment
• Strong analytical thinking and willingness to learn; some experience with data analysis or related coursework/projects preferred.

Nice-to-have

• Basic understanding of Data Governance principles and an eagerness to develop framing and stewardship skills.
• Familiarity or exposure to data mapping, data modelling or data profiling tools/processes (can be through education, internships or hands‑on projects).
• Comfortable working in iterative/Agile/Kanban environments and able to collaborate effectively with stakeholders while learning quickly.

Eligibility Criteria for Undergraduates:

We are looking for students based in the UK who complete their undergraduate degree between 2024 and 2026.

Important Note:

• We do not provide sponsorship for UK work visas during or after the graduate program.
• To be eligible for the 2-year program, you must have the right to work in the UK for its entire duration.

Next Steps:

In the event of your successful progression to the next stage, one of our future talent team will contact you within two - three weeks of the application closing date.

Start Date:

September 2026

Equal Opportunity Employer:

We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing diverse, talented, and committed people together. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when diverse ideas come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively. We are an equal opportunity employer, committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace.

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully

Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.

Required Skills:

Academic Quality Improvement Program (AQIP), Academic Quality Improvement Program (AQIP), Accountability, Agile Team Practices, Chemotherapy, Consumer Behavior Analysis, Customer Insights, Data Analysis, Data Governance, Data Quality, Data Visualization, Detail-Oriented, Direct Marketing, Financial Forecasting, Immunotherapy, Interventional Oncology, IS Audit, Kanban Systems, Market Development, Market Penetration, Market Research Techniques, Market Understanding, Pricing Strategies, Product Lifecycle, Product Management.

How to Apply (Please read):

Please complete the online application form by answering questions within the application and upload your CV and Cover Letter in a combined document in the ‘resume/CV’ section.

Our standard Future Talent recruitment process is: An online application, a virtual conversation and then a final assessment.