Graduate Vacuum Engineer

Uk Atomic Energy Authority; England; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 39,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Salary £35,227 base

Pension with 21.5% employer contrib.

25 days annual leave + holidays

Flexible working options

Skern Lodge residential

Job summary

UK Atomic Energy Authority is offering its Graduate Development Programme for science or engineering graduates, a structured early-career path to grow technical and leadership skills.

You will work on real projects, including vacuum engineering for MAST-U, while collaborating with experienced engineers and specialists to advance fusion technology and prepare for professional registration.

Qualifications

• Degree in Science or Engineering from 2025 to 2027.
• Ambition to learn and take on new challenges.
• Ability to collaborate and communicate with technical and non-technical audiences.

Responsibilities

• Help deliver innovative vacuum engineering solutions for MAST-U.
• Work on real-world engineering projects from design to testing and commissioning.
• Collaborate with engineers and specialists to develop technical, project management and leadership skills.

Skills

Strong appetite to learn

Collaborate effectively

Communicate clearly

Well organised and adaptable

Education

Degree in Science or Engineering

Job description

Job Description

About us

Fusion, the process that powers the sun and stars, is one of the most promising options for generating the cleaner, carbon-free energy that our world badly needs. UKAEA leads the way in realizing fusion energy, partnering with industry and research organisations to achieve ground-breaking advancements. Our goal is to bring fusion electricity to the grid by developing the power stations of tomorrow and the skilled workforce to deliver them.

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 groundbreaking 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.

How you'll develop

• Help deliver innovative vacuum engineering solutions that support one of the UK's most advanced fusion experiments, MAST-U.
• Work on a variety of real-world engineering projects, from designing and specifying equipment to testing, commissioning and improving system performance.
• Collaborate with experienced engineers and technical specialists to solve complex challenges while developing your technical, project management and leadership skills through our accredited graduate programme, recognised by IMechE, IET and IoP, supporting your journey towards professional registration.

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

Benefits

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

• £35,227 base salary.
• 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.