Intern in the Science Engagement and Oversight Office, CESAR Digital transformation

Our team and mission

This position is based at the European Space Astronomy Centre  (ESAC) - Near Madrid, Spain

Under the direct authority of the Directorate of Science, the Head of the Science Engagement and Oversight Office is responsible for overseeing the scientific content of the Programme, interfacing with the scientific community and providing scientific expertise to studies, projects and missions, also in other Directorates as needed.

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

Field(s) of activity for the internship

Topic of the internship: Digital transformation of the CESAR Space Science Experience - II

CesaR (Cooperation through Education in Science and Astronomy Research) is a joint educational programme developed by the European Space Agency (ESA), the Spanish National Institute for Aerospace Technology (INTA) and the public company ISDEFE. It is based at ESA’s European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC) in Villanueva de la Cañada, Madrid, Spain. Its main goal is to provide students and teachers from European schools with hands-on educational materials and resources about Astrophysics and Space Sciences, to be carried out in the classroom, as well as easy access to ESA´s data archive and to optical and radio telescopes.  

The CESAR Team is undergoing a continuous process of transformation of its digital educational materials, currently hosted in the project´s website, adapting them to new formats which are more engaging for the students, such as online labs, VR applications and e-learning platforms. In this context, we follow the principles and guidelines already established by our colleagues from ESA Education, with whom the CESAR team is in regular contact.  

The update of the materials pursues a second goal: to ensure they are accessible, inclusive, and diverse. A revision of all these aspects started already in 2023 and will be continued in 2024.  

Your work will have a dual dimension, working toward the transformation of the educational resources and their revision from an inclusion perspective.

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 must be a university student, preferably in your final or second-to-last year of a university course at Master’s level and you need to remain enrolled at your University for the entire duration of the internship.

Additional requirements

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.

• Good understanding  of astronomical concepts;
• Pedagological skills, experience working with primary and secondary school-level students; 
• Experience designing education materials for inclusive and diverse audiences;
• Capable of working in international teams;
• Fluent in English (reading and writing);
• Creative, capable to meet milestones within schedules; 
• Good communication skills;
• Good understanding of astronomical concepts;
• Familiarity with inclusive and diverse environments; 
• Creativity, Capable of working in international teams and alone;
• Capable of  meeting milestones within schedules;
• Experience and/or knowledge in UX Design.