Junior Professional in AI and Data Science

This post is part of ESA’s Junior Professional Programme. ESA is looking for enthusiastic candidates with up to 3 years of relevant professional experience after their Master's degree to join ESA for a four-year assignment. During this time, you will be actively working and learning on the job and will benefit from valuable mobility and developmental opportunities that will prepare you for a successful career at ESA. Subject to performance, it is therefore the intention to offer you an indefinite contract which will start at the end of the four years.

Developmental assignments form an integral part of the Junior Professional Programme and may entail a temporary relocation to another ESA establishment or other location.

Junior Professional in AI and Data Science

Junior Professional in AI & Data Science in the AI & Data Science Section, Future Engineering Division, Systems Department, Directorate of Technology, Engineering and Quality.

The Future Engineering Division, in support of the programme directorates, is responsible for developing and providing the right engineering expertise, tools, methods and standards for the development of future projects. The role of the Division’s AI and Data Science Section is to lead the Agency’s centre of excellence for artificial intelligence (AI). The Section supports the development and exploitation of future space missions focusing on AI technologies and techniques, development and verification methods for AI systems, data science technologies and development methods, identification of future applications of AI, and monitoring evolutions of advanced technologies, such as quantum computing, to explore their suitability for space applications.

Description

As a Junior Professional, you will be expected to demonstrate the feasibility and advantages of the application of artificial intelligence technologies in space systems, particularly in one or more of the following areas:

• Mission design and engineering: developing AI assistants capable of supporting the development of space missions during their entire lifecycle, ensuring compliance with the highest standards;
• Insights from mission data: developing, adapting and deploying AI techniques in space assets to support the analysis of data directly on board, minimising the time required to extract insights and minimising the downlink of large amounts of data;
• AI trustworthiness: developing and validating trustworthy AI methods for space applications, with emphasis on explainability, robustness, uncertainty quantification, safety assurance and compliance with relevant engineering standards.

You will use existing laboratory facilities, and potentially the ESA Space High-Performance Computer, to demonstrate appropriate technologies, and will actively search for promising application areas and provide demonstration testbeds and benchmarks for AI techniques and applications.

Development programme

In addition to your daily work, you will take part in an extensive learning and development programme. From day one, you will learn on the job and benefit from tailored development opportunities, including participation in technical and key skills training courses.

Furthermore, there is a mobility component to the Junior Professional Programme that can be either an internal rotation to another team within ESA, an external secondment outside of ESA or a combination of both. Internal rotations aim to boost your professional experience and knowledge of the European Space Agency, whereas external secondments aim to boost your professional experience and knowledge of the European space sector.

This programme represents a significant investment by ESA in your personal and professional development and is designed to provide you with the required knowledge and skills for a career at ESA. You can expect to be given many opportunities to develop your professional experience and competencies, to learn from ESA experts and to contribute to ESA activities.

Technical competencies

• Experience with artificial intelligence and machine learning frameworks
• Experience of big data frameworks (data warehouse and data lake technologies)
• Knowledge of several AI techniques and technologies, such as supervised, unsupervised and reinforcement machine learning, model compression, transfer learning, natural language processing, large language models and trustworthiness (explainable AI, uncertainty quantification and surrogate models), and experience in one or more of the aforementioned areas
• Knowledge of space systems and potential applications
• Awareness of space standards

Behavioural competencies

• Result Orientation
• Operational Efficiency
• Fostering Cooperation
• Relationship Management
• Continuous Improvement
• Forward Thinking

Education and professional experience

A master’s degree in computer science, artificial intelligence or a related discipline is required, with up to three years of professional experience.

Important Information and Disclaimer

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

Nationality and Languages

Applications are only considered from nationals 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, the United Kingdom, Canada, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia.

According to the ESA Convention, staff shall be recruited on the basis of their qualifications, taking into account an adequate distribution of posts among nationals of the 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.