R&D Packaging Design Excellence Placement

About the Role

Are you studying towards a Degree in Industrial/Product Design, Packaging Design or related disciplines? Do you want a taste of the career you could have with Mondelez? Sink your teeth into one of our internships.

R&D Internships - Taste The Future Program UK are 12 months long (although some roles have the flexibility to be shorter) and during your placement, we’ll make you an integral part of our team and give you a real job – with real responsibilities – from day one. We hope to help you expand your horizons and will encourage your personal and professional development.

We want to make sure you get the most from your time with us. That’s why once you join we’ll work out ambitious but achievable goals for you. Then through the support of a buddy and regular reviews with your manager, we’ll help you achieve them.

Join the Packaging Premium Gifting and Innovation Team and help shape the future of chocolate packaging and elevate the consumer experience.

This R&D Packaging Design Excellence Internship - Taste The Future Program UK offers a unique opportunity to explore the intersection of design, innovation, and food packaging. You’ll contribute to early-stage packaging concepts for iconic brands, helping translate brand stories into premium, sustainable, and distinctive packaging experiences. You'll work closely with global and regional stakeholders to co-create ideas that feel elevated and meaningful.

Life in Research & Development (R&D)

• As an intern at Mondelēz International you will be responsible and accountable for your project(s).
• During the placement you will be expected to plan and execute tests of various scale (e.g. benchtop, pilot plant, and factory) as appropriate for your project as well as to coordinate informal sensory assessment.
• Key deliverables would be to produce technical reports/presentations and periodically communicate your key findings to stakeholders.
• You will also have the opportunity to interact with the wider R&D Community, other business functions and external suppliers.
• In addition to this you may also be expected to support other ongoing project activities in and outside of your immediate team.
• For some roles, occasional international travel may be required.

Key Responsibilities

• Support design ideation, concept development, and packaging storytelling for premium chocolate experiences.
• Contribute to consumer-centric design thinking workshops and ideation sprints.
• Assist in visualizing packaging concepts through mood boards, sketching, mock-ups, and digital renderings.
• Conduct benchmarking of premium packaging in food, cosmetics, fashion, and other sectors.
• Explore new shapes, materials, textures, finishes, and structures to elevate perceived value and shelf impact.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams including Marketing, Design Agencies, Product, and Consumer Science.
• Support creation of presentation materials for internal showcases and stakeholder alignment.

What We’re Looking For

A creative, curious, and thoughtful mind who is excited about how packaging influences perception, emotion, and brand love. You are likely to have:

• Education: Background in Industrial/Product Design, Packaging Design, or related discipline.
• Creativity & Curiosity: You love to explore, ideate, and challenge the norm. You’re not afraid to ask, “what if?”
• Visual Communication Skills: Ability to clearly express ideas through sketches, mock-ups, storyboards, and visual presentations — from rough concepts to polished proposals.
• Software Proficiency: Familiarity with 2D design tools such as Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop), Esko ArtiosCAD, and 3Ddesign tools such as SolidWorks, Rhino, KeyShot, or similar.
• Consumer Focus: You think from the perspective of the consumer and are keen to design for emotion and delight.
• Collaborative Mindset: Comfortable working in diverse teams with marketers, engineers, designers, and suppliers.
• Agility: Able to manage multiple tasks, adapt quickly, and respond to feedback constructively.

What You’ll Gain

• Experience working on real-world innovation and packaging concept projects.
• Insight into Mondelez’s creative development process in an international R&D setting.
• Mentoring and feedback from senior R&D packaging developers and innovation leads.
• Opportunities to present and showcase your ideas across the business.
• A collaborative, inclusive, and consumer-obsessed culture.

Salary and Eligibility

Starting salary: £23,793

This position does not meet the minimum salary requirements for Skilled Worker visa sponsorship. Therefore, we are unable to consider applicants who require sponsorship. Applicants must already have the right to work in the UK.

Application details

Design submission

To support your application, please submit a digital one-page document alongside your CV. This one-pager is an opportunity to showcase and pitch your design expertise, including creative thinking, concept development, and any other relevant abilities.

Closing date for applications Monday 12 October 2026.

We will be holding our final stage assessment center for this role in-person at our Bournville offices in November 2026. Reasonable travel expenses will be covered.

For more details on our Early Careers schemes and advice on our application process, visit our careers site today - Early Careers - UK | Mondelēz International, Inc. (mondelezinternational.com)

We celebrate diversity, so if you require any adjustment to take part in our hiring process, let us know and we will work with you to help remove barriers and make the process accessible. You never have to disclose more than you're comfortable with - just tell us what you need. Please see the details on our dedicated D&I careers page.

Our candidate requirements are based on criteria to enable you to succeed in the role. If you have narrowly missed the above requirements and there are extenuating circumstances that you would like us to consider, you can let us know by contacting earlycareersenquiries@mdlz.com stating “UK&I Early Careers” as the subject and attaching a letter from your school/university to confirm your extenuating circumstances.

How to apply

To apply for this role and to find out more, please click on the apply button. Please note that applications may close before the application deadline, so apply early to avoid disappointment.