Our team and mission

The Independent Safety Office is responsible for overseeing the development, implementation, maintenance of ESA policies, requirements, standards and functional support to ESA projects for:

Planetary Protection;
Space Debris Mitigation;
Nuclear Safety for applications in space;
Re-entry safety;
Human Spaceflight Safety.

You are encouraged to visit the ESA website: http://www.esa.int

Field(s) of activity/research for the traineeship

Background
Planetary Protection is the discipline to promote sustainable and responsible explorations in space by tackling the potential transfer of biological matter to and from Earth and other objects in the Solar System.
The mandate for planetary protection is given by the United Nations - Outer Space Treaty (Articles VI and IX). State parties to the treaty shall ensure: 1) harmful contamination to celestial bodies is avoided (included the Moon); 2) Earth-Moon are protected by the unintentional release of potentially hazardous matter from space.

Activities
As ESA Graduate Trainee in planetary protection, you will be supporting the ESA planetary protection officer in the effort of ensuring ESA space missions compliance with the ESA planetary protection policy / technical requirements, and developing state-of-the-art tools to avoid cross contamination in space.

In doing so, you will learn how to work in risk informed decision frameworks and multidisciplinary teams, liaise with internal to ESA and international stakeholders, as well as monitor scientific and technological trends to modernise planetary protection toolkits. You will also be involved and learn about spacecraft design, cleanliness levels required to fly in space, and the overall process to develop, implement and accept space hardware subject to planetary protection requirements.

Main activities for the position include support to the ESA planetary protection officer in:

Oversighting planetary protection implementation activities for ESA space programs;
Coordinating, initiating, managing R&D activities on planetary protection;
Supporting interaction with ESA internal and international partners (i.e. relevant academic organisations in the field of planetary protection, Committee on Space Research);
Contributing to the definition of planetary protection related technologies;
Participating and contributing to ESA advisory panels in the matter of planetary protection;
Ensuring dissemination of information via for e.g. writing of scientific papers to be published in international magazines.

Technical competencies

Knowledge of relevant technical/functional domains

Relevant experience gained during internships, project work and/or extracurricular or other activities

General knowledge of the space sector and relevant activities

Knowledge of ESA and its programmes/projects

Behavioural competencies

Result Orientation

Operational Efficiency

Fostering Cooperation

Relationship Management

Continuous Improvement

Forward Thinking

For more information, please refer to ESA Core Behavioural Competencies guidebook

Education

You should have just completed, or be in the final year of your master’ s degree in science (related scientific disciplines) or engineering.

Additional requirements

You should have good interpersonal and communication skills and should be able to work in a multicultural environment, both independently and as part of a team. Previous experience of working in international teams can be considered an asset. Your motivation, overall professional perspective and career goals will also be explored during the later stages of the selection process.

Previous experience in astrobiology, modelling, programming in C, C++, Python, MATLAB, Mathematica, Java, is considered an asset.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusiveness
ESA is an equal opportunity employer, committed to achieving diversity within the workforce and creating an inclusive working environment. We therefore welcome applications from all qualified candidates irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, beliefs, age, disability or other characteristics. Applications from women are encouraged.

At the Agency we value diversity, and we welcome people with disabilities. Whenever possible, we seek to accommodate individuals with disabilities by providing the necessary support at the workplace. The Human Resources Department can also provide assistance during the recruitment process. If you would like to discuss this further, please contact us via email at contact.human.resources@esa.int.

Important Information and Disclaimer
Applicants must be eligible to access information, technology, and hardware which is subject to European or US export control and sanctions regulations & security clearance by their national security administrations.

During the recruitment process, the Agency may request applicants to undergo selection tests. Additionally, successful candidates will need to undergo basic screening before appointment, which will be conducted by an external background screening service, in compliance with the European Space Agency's security procedures.

The information published on ESA’s careers website regarding working conditions is correct at the time of publication. It is not intended to be exhaustive and may not address all questions you would have.

Nationality and Languages
Please note that applications can only be considered from nationals of one of the following States: Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Nationals from Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia as Associate Member States, or Canada as a Cooperating State, can apply as well as those from Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus and Malta as European Cooperating States (ECS).

According to the ESA Convention, the recruitment of staff must take into account an adequate distribution of posts among nationals of the ESA Member States*. When short-listing for an interview, priority will be given to external candidates from under-represented Member States*.

The working languages of the Agency are English and French. A good knowledge of one of these is required. Knowledge of another Member State language would be an asset.

*Member States, Associate Members or Cooperating States.

ESA Graduate Trainee in Planetary protection

Job description