Research Scientist

慨正橡扯; Luton; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Time to Recharge

Pension scheme

Private healthcare

Online learning access

Job summary

Leonardo in Luton is seeking researchers with a STEM PhD to advance defence technology in a predominantly office and lab setting. You will contribute to early concept studies, data fusion across sensors, and the development of simulators while receiving mentoring and ongoing technical development.

The role welcomes scientists and engineers from diverse backgrounds, emphasising continuous learning, collaboration, and problem solving, with hybrid working and a strong focus on developing practical,

Qualifications

• PhD, EngD or other research experience in STEM fields.
• Experience with theoretical or applied research in academic or business settings.
• Experience collaborating with others within a research group or wider field.
• Strong drive for continuous self-improvement and methodical problem solving.
• Understanding of Systems Engineering processes.

Responsibilities

• Conduct applied and early concept research on new technologies or concepts.
• Assess design decisions impact on performance during high-level design work.
• Prototype and optimise solutions in your domain through low-level design.
• Lead or contribute to concept studies for threat detection or data fusion.
• Develop simulators to support testing and validation of processing solutions.

Skills

PhD in STEM

Data fusion

Team collaboration

Coding experience

Matlab/Simulink

Problem solving

Education

PhD EngD or equivalent

Tools

Matlab

Simulink

Job description

Job Description:

Your Impact

Are you a researcher in industry or academia looking to advance your career and work on technology that will shape the future of defence? If you have a STEM PhD and five years UK residency, we are looking for talented Scientists and Engineers with experience in research and collaboration to join us at Leonardo in Luton in a predominantly office and laboratory-based role.

We are not expecting you to have domain knowledge of electronic warfare systems, or significant experience in engineering. What we are looking for are scientists and engineers looking to build their technical knowledge through training, team working, and one-to-one mentoring.

What you'll do as a Research Scientist

• Applied research: Early research looking into exploiting new technologies or concepts
• High-level design: Understanding the impact of design decisions on performance
• Low-level design: Detailed design, prototyping and optimisation of a particular solution using expertise within their technical domain

We need talented scientists and engineers to take early concepts from a variety of sources and turn them into working solutions.

You do not need a background in engineering to make a difference. Our System Engineers predominantly come from science backgrounds. Many of these people at Leonardo have PhDs/EngDs from a diverse range of research domains across STEM.

We will support you in your technical and professional development whatever your background, and provide challenging technical work to allow you to excel. Our working environment is fast-paced but relaxed. We value the expertise of our engineers and work to ensure they have the autonomy and confidence to make decisions themselves or as a team. We put trust in all our engineers to ensure they remain in control of their work and future career prospects.

Examples of Work

• Contribute or lead an early concept study investigating whether new types of algorithm could improve the detection of threats at range
• Support the development and implementation of data fusion across multiple sensor types
• Develop simulators used in supporting test and validation of processing solutions

What you'll bring

• A PhD, EngD or other relevant research experience within a Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths subject
• Experience of theoretical or applied research in an academic or business environment
• Experience of collaborating with others either within your research group or wider afield
• A drive for continuously improvement of your own skills and knowledge
• A methodical approach to solving large complex problems
• Experience in planning, leading and overseeing technical research or development tasks
• An appreciation of the Systems Engineering process
• Coding is central to our day to day work. You should have some experience of using a programming language to solve problems or develop models. Experience using Matlab and Simulink would be an advantage

This is not an exhaustive list, and we are keen to hear from you even if you might not have experience in all the above. The most important skill is a good attitude and willingness to learn.

Security Clearance

This role is subject to pre-employment screening in line with the UK Government's Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS), along with an additional range of Personnel Security Controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV), including meeting the eligibility requirements for The Security Check (SC) or Developed Vetting (DV). For more information and guidance please visit: https://careers.uk.leonardo.com/gb/en/security-and-vetting. Due to the nature of the work and its connections to UK Defence strategy, applicants must have five years UK Residency and hold a UK Passport.

Why join us

At Leonardo, our people are at the heart of everything we do. We offer a comprehensive, company-funded benefits package that supports your wellbeing, career development, and work-life balance. Whether you're looking to grow professionally, care for your health, or plan for the future, we're here to help you thrive.

• Time to Recharge: Enjoy generous leave with the opportunity to accrue up to 12 additional flexi-days each year.
• Secure your Future: Benefit from our award-winning pension scheme with up to 15% employer contribution.
• Your Wellbeing Matters: Free access to mental health support, financial advice, and employee-led networks championing inclusion and diversity (Enable, Pride, Equalise, Armed Forces, Carers, Wellbeing and Ethnicity).
• Rewarding Performance: All employees at management level and below are eligible for our bonus scheme.
• Never Stop Learning: Free access to 4,000+ online courses via Coursera and LinkedIn Learning.
• Refer a friend: Receive a financial reward through our referral programme.
• Tailored Perks: Spend up to £500 annually on flexible benefits including private healthcare, dental, family cover, tech & lifestyle discounts, gym memberships and more.
• Flexible working: Flexible hours with hybrid working options. For part time opportunities, please talk to us about what might be possible for this role.

For a full list of our company benefits please visit our website.

Leonardo is a global leader in Aerospace, Defence, and Security. Headquartered in Italy, we employ over 53,000 people worldwide including 8,500 across 9 sites in the UK. Our employees are not just part of a team—they are key contributors to shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety.

At Leonardo we are committed to building an inclusive, accessible, and welcoming workplace. We believe that a diverse workforce sparks creativity, drives innovation, and leads to better outcomes for our people and our customers. If you have any accessibility requirements to support you during the recruitment process, just let us know.

Primary Location: GB - Luton - Cap. Green 300

Contract Type: Permanent

Hybrid Working: Hybrid