Varda

Spacecraft Engineering Internship (Mission Operations) - Spring/Summer 2025

El Segundo, California, United States

Internship

4 minutes ago

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Job description

About Varda

The environment of space hold the potential to craft products that profoundly enhance life on Earth. Varda is at the forefront of this endeavor, harnessing the unique environment of low earth orbit to produce these innovations and reintroduce them to our world. Our mission transcends mere exploration; we're expanding the economic horizons of humanity.

At Varda, you'll be positioned at the nexus of ambition and expertise. Our seasoned team, with its rich legacy in aerospace and technology, has honed its skills in the corridors of industry giants. Here, your contributions will be both cherished and critiqued by leaders who, with a wealth of experience behind them, are now devoted to the realm of extraterrestrial manufacturing.

While our aspirations soar high, our path is grounded in technical pragmatism and operational viability. Our conceptual operations are crystalline material processing and reentry, backed by years of research and development anchored in the International Space Station's, and commercial space sectors expansive achievements.

Join Varda, and work to finally create a bustling in-space ecosystem.

About This Role

You must be enrolled in an Undergraduate/ Graduate program to be considered. Spring internships will range between the months of January and May. Summer internships will range between the months of May and September. All dates dependent upon the university schedule of the selected students. Internships are full-time and on-site in Los Angeles, CA.

The Mission Operations team is responsible for developing, planning, and executing Varda's on-orbit missions. Members of this team need to be a jack-of-all trades, capable of applying cross-discipline engineering to bespoke solutions. For this role, you will work alongside experienced Mission Directors and multiple engineering teams to conceptualize, develop, and standup web tools that will support our rapidly growing flight manifest.

Internships at Varda are optimal for students looking to grow technically and professionally while working on impactful projects critical to the company’s success. You will be working on a collaborative team in a startup environment while being able to learn from some of most accomplished and experienced aerospace professionals in the world. We’re dedicated to providing an experience that will let your decisions and contributions help drive Varda’s success.

Responsibilities

Operate as an integrated member of Varda's Mission Operations team.
Own the full stack development life cycle of your code and its system impacts. Contributing to the software that supports in-space operations of Varda's Spacecraft and payloads.
Perform all necessary verification, infrastructure integration, and system testing of the software you develop.
Work across engineering teams to implement and execute the first use-cases of your tool(s).
Support missions in real time as your tools are used in live operations.

Basic Qualifications

Full stack coding experience with web application languages such as Python, nginx, Java, JavaScript, HTML, C, C++, and CSS.
Familiarity in deploying, executing, and debugging code built for servers.
Pursuing a degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Software Engineering, Aerospace, or a related field.

Preferred Skills And Experience

Experience building web applications.
Experience with software data management and scaling.
Experience with Aerospace, or other complex, operations.
Experience leveraging or configuring Continuous Integration pipelines.
Familiarity with Linux.
Previous internship or co-op experience.
Previous experience on technical project teams (i.e. Cubesat projects, Solar Car, Formula SAE, etc.)

ITAR Requirements

Varda, like all employers, must ensure that its employees working in the United States are lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. Additionally, our employees are exposed to and have access to certain export-controlled items. At present, some of our technology to which employees have access requires a license to be exported to individuals other than “U.S. Persons” as defined in U.S. export regulations. Because our employees are provided access to export-controlled items, our current policy is to only hire “U.S. persons” who are permitted to have access to our technology without an export license.

“US person” means: U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident, or protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3) (i.e., individual admitted to the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum in the U.S.)
Learn more about the ITAR here.

Benefits

Exciting team of professionals at the top of their field to working by your side
Working in El Segundo, CA - an awesome Southern California beach city with quick access to entertainment and outdoor activities
Equity in a fully funded space startup with potential for significant growth (interns excluded)
401(k) matching (interns excluded)
Unlimited PTO (interns excluded)
Health insurance, including Vision and Dental
Lunch and snacks provided on site every day. Dinners provided twice a week.
Maternity / Paternity leave (interns excluded)

Varda Space Industries is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Candidates and employees are always evaluated based on merit, qualifications, and performance. We will never discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, national origin, ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, martial status, mental or physical disability, or any other legally protected status.

E-Verify Statement

Varda Space Industries, Inc. participates in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security E-Verify program. The E-Verify program is an Internet-based employment eligibility verification system operated by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Learn more about the E-Verify program.

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