Junior Professional in AI and Large Language Models Applications for EO Projects
Noordwijk, NL
This post is part of ESA’s Junior Professional Programme. We are looking for enthusiastic candidates with up to 2–3 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.
The selection process for the 2025 cohort of Junior Professionals will take place during Spring 2025, with a projected start date in October or November 2025.
Recruitment will take place at the A1 grade. At the end of the fourth year and if you are offered an indefinite contract at the end of your Junior Professional assignment, you will be upgraded to the A2 grade.
Location
ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands or other site, as required.
Developmental assignments form an integral part of the JP Programme and may entail a temporary relocation to another ESA establishment or other location.
Description
The Directorate of Earth Observation Programmes runs a large number of development projects, ranging from Copernicus, Meteo to EO research missions, for a variety of applications and users. Each mission includes a set of spacecraft or standalone instruments whose implementation is managed via a dedicated project through the so-called Phases A/B1/B2/C/D up to launch and in-orbit commissioning (Phase E1) before being handed over for exploitation (Phase E2).
The use of artificial intelligence, and more specifically large language models, is envisaged as support for the technical management of projects in areas such as:
- support for project review cycles (SRR, PDR, CDR and QAR);
- generation of technical reporting on projects;
- analysis of project data and identification of patterns and outliers;
- support for managing meetings and tracking actions;
- enabling a centralised knowledge base of technical data and solutions;
- automating other repetitive tasks.
You will work as a member of the Earth Observation Projects Department, Directorate of Earth Observation Programmes.
You will be responsible for supporting the development, deployment and validation of a large language model tailored to the project’s technical management needs, starting with the Copernicus Expansion Mission.
You will initially support the CHIME project and report to the CHIME Project Manager as well as the Copernicus Space Segment Technical Coordinator for all technical and programmatic matters.
Duties
Your tasks and responsibilities will include the following:
- generating and maintaining a list of user needs and use case scenarios for the application of the large language model (LLM) to support the technical management of Sentinels Expansion projects;
- supporting the LLM’s implementation, including the infrastructure design, security aspects, model preparation, model deployment and integration;
- coordinating the LLM’s verification and validation;
- coordinating user training;
- supporting the evolution of the LLM’s architecture and infrastructure based on user feedback.
Additionally, you will:
- review the project documentation produced throughout a project’s lifetime;
- participate in project meetings and reviews;
- participate in the launch campaign, LEOP (launch and early operations) and IOC (in-orbit commissioning) activities for Sentinels Expansion missions.
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.
In particular, for this specific post you will have opportunities for frequent interaction and colocation periods with the Copernicus Ground Segment team, located at ESRIN (Frascati, Italy). During these periods, you will become familiar with the ground segment architecture, implementation and operations. This expertise will allow you to evolve the LLM model and infrastructure in line with the latest IT and security solutions deployed at ground segment level .
Furthermore, you will have the opportunity to support the Expansion Project teams at ESOC (Darmstadt, Germany) during the launch and early orbit phase.
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
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
A Master's degree in a relevant scientific/engineering/computer science discipline is required for this post.
Additional requirements
You should have between two and three years of professional experience, preferably in a relevant domain, after completion of your Master's degree.
You should have the ability to work both autonomously and as part of a team within the boundaries of assigned tasks and a stringent schedule.
You must be proficient in the English language (spoken and written).
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.
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.
Note that ESA is in the process of transitioning to a Matrix setup, which could lead to organisational changes affecting this position.
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 are only 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, the United Kingdom and Canada, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia.
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 first be given to internal candidates and secondly 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.