Graduate Systems Engineer

UK Atomic Energy Authority; Abingdon; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 30,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension scheme (Final salary)

25 days annual leave

Flexible working

Skern Lodge residency

Job summary

The UK Atomic Energy Authority invites graduates to join its Graduate Development Programme, a structured route to build technical, professional and leadership skills while contributing to ground-breaking fusion research. This is a meaningful first step designed to develop your engineering mindset and project capabilities within a supportive community.

You'll spend 80% in role-based work within a multidisciplinary team and 20% on development activities, working with mentors and varied projects

Qualifications

• Degree in Science or Engineering required.
• Strong motivation to learn and take on challenges.
• Ability to collaborate and communicate with technical and non-technical audiences.
• Good organisation and adaptability to plan and prioritise workload.

Responsibilities

• Help develop innovative engineering solutions that support the future of fusion energy.
• Work with engineers from different disciplines to solve complex challenges and deliver exciting projects.
• Learn how to capture requirements, assess design options and support the development of complex systems.
• Use engineering tools and analysis techniques to help improve system performance, reliability and safety.
• Develop your technical, communication and project skills through hands-on experience, mentoring and structured development opportunities.

Education

Degree in Science or Engineering

Job description

What you'll join

Your degree got you this far. Where could fusion energy take you?

If you're looking for your first graduate role and want a career that's meaningful, challenging, and packed with opportunities to grow, UKAEA's Graduate Development Programme could be the perfect next step. Working alongside world-leading experts, you'll help advance ground breaking fusion technology while building the technical, professional, and leadership skills needed for a successful career. This is your chance to be part of an industry that's helping create a sustainable future for generations to come.

What you'll do

• Help develop innovative engineering solutions that support the future of fusion energy.
• Work with engineers from different disciplines to solve complex challenges and deliver exciting projects.
• Learn how to capture requirements, assess design options and support the development of complex systems.
• Use engineering tools and analysis techniques to help improve system performance, reliability and safety.
• Develop your technical, communication and project skills through hands‑on experience, mentoring and structured development opportunities.

How you'll develop

On the graduate scheme here at the UK Atomic Energy Authority, you will have 20% of your time focused on professional and personal development. This will include a series of core development activities to fast track your business acumen, along with skills for technical, project management and people leadership.

The remaining 80% of time is role-based, working within a team growing your technical knowledge within your chosen discipline. Working with your line manager, you will get the opportunity to experience different roles and responsibilities within projects to broaden your understanding and help decide your future career route.

What you'll need

• Degree in Science or Engineering from 2025 to 2027.
• Driven, with a strong appetite to learn and take on new challenges.
• Able to collaborate effectively and communicate clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Well organised and adaptable with the ability to plan and prioritise workload.

We have a generous range of benefits (see the full list here) and highlights include:

• Final salary defined benefit scheme with an equivalent of 21.5% employer pension contribution.
• 25 days annual leave, plus 3 days Christmas closure and 2.5 privilege days, in addition to UK bank holidays.
• Flexible working options plus family-friendly leave provisions.
• Take part in our Skern Lodge residential to develop new skills and build your network.

Our commitment to ED&I

UKAEA's mission is clean energy for all, and we welcome talented people from all backgrounds to help us achieve this goal. We are committed to equality, diversity, and inclusion and strive to ensure fair representation across our workforce. We particularly encourage applications from groups currently underrepresented in STEM, including women and individuals from diverse ethnic backgrounds, while ensuring all appointments are made on merit.

UK Atomic Energy Authority is committed to being accessible. Please email [e-mail] if you have any questions or require any help or adjustments.

AI may be used for preparation purposes only. All responses submitted during interviews and assessments must be your own work.

To maintain a fair recruitment process, candidates are limited to two applications across our Early Careers programmes. If you apply for multiple roles, we may contact you to discuss which opportunities best match your skills and interests.