WALES — The Welsh Ambulance Service announced that newly qualified paramedics will not be offered roles this year due to financial and operational issues. Students in their final year of paramedic science degrees in Wales were advised to apply for paramedic roles in Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

Around 70 students are expected to graduate from BSc paramedic science courses in Wales this summer. The recruitment freeze affects graduates from Swansea University and Wrexham University, which provide BSc paramedic science courses in Wales.

Healthcare Education and Improvement Wales subsidises degree-level training for paramedics and will have spent millions of pounds on bursaries for this year's cohort. The organization has informed the paramedic student cohort that they are no longer bound by the bursary requirement to stay in Wales.

In previous years, newly qualified paramedics were typically employed at NHS band 5 as Newly Qualified Paramedics within the Welsh Ambulance Service. Newly Qualified Paramedics in the Welsh Ambulance Service receive mentorship for up to two years before progressing to career paramedics on an NHS band 6 pay scale. In 2025, only around one third of paramedic science graduates in Wales were initially offered Newly Qualified Paramedic posts, while others were offered NHS band 4 roles as Emergency Medical Technicians.

Carl Kneeshaw said the Welsh Ambulance Service is navigating a difficult financial and operational landscape. Kneeshaw said the Welsh Ambulance Service is encouraging paramedic graduates to consider Emergency Medical Technician roles expected to be recruited throughout 2026, as well as positions within other ambulance services and health and social care organisations.

"We understand that the Wales Ambulance Services Trust is engaging with Healthcare Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) on this issue, and we continue to liaise closely with both bodies to understand the impact and any possible alternative solutions," a spokesperson for Swansea University said.

"We are committed to ensuring our investment in NHS education and training is supported by meaningful employment opportunities. We are working closely with the Welsh Ambulance Services Trust (WAST), HEIW and universities to address these challenges and support graduates," a Welsh government spokesperson said.

Final-year paramedic students in Wales complete clinical placements that can last several months and cover distances of more than 100 miles from their homes. Dr Gwyn Williams, candidate for Gŵyr Abertawe, said the loss of graduates from the NHS workforce in Wales threatens to worsen ambulance waiting times.