Intern in the Systems Department - FDIR System Engineering

European Space Agency; Noordwijk; On-site; EUR 8,900 - 13,000; Full time

Job summary

European Space Agency in Noordwijk, NL invites motivated university students to intern in the Systems Department focusing on Failure Detection, Isolation and Recovery (FDIR) engineering. You will work across systems engineering, reliability, software, operations and mission analysis to learn from real mission data.

During the internship you will analyse spacecraft anomaly reports, assess monitoring strategies, and contribute to engineering toolchains and knowledge management for future missions.

Qualifications

• Must be a university student enrolled for the entire internship duration.
• Preferably in final or second-to-last year of Master's level study in a relevant field.
• Good knowledge of English (and/or French) is required.

Responsibilities

• Analyzing spacecraft anomaly reports and mission databases from multiple ESA missions.
• Identify failures, false positives, nuisance alarms and operational workarounds related to FDIR functions.
• Assess effectiveness of monitoring strategies and autonomous fault management concepts.
• Identify weaknesses, missing observability, or design shortcomings in monitoring and recovery architectures.
• Collect evidence-based lessons learned and map them to engineering recommendations for future missions.
• Contribute to the development and maintenance of a structured database of spacecraft monitors and recovery actions.
• Support evolution of engineering tools for FDIR design and analysis.

Skills

Analytical skills

Structured thinking

Communication skills

Education

Master's level student in a relevant field

Tools

Python

Databases

Data analytics tools

Job description

Intern in the Systems Department - FDIR System Engineering

Job Requisition ID: 21060

Date Posted: 1 November 2026

Closing Date: 30 November 2026 23:59 CET/CEST

Directorate: Technology, Engineering and Quality

Workplace: Noordwijk, NL

Our team and mission

Our team is responsible for Failure Detection, Isolation and Recovery. We support the development of space missions throughout their lifecycle, from early concept studies to operations, with a particular focus on fault management, system autonomy, mission robustness and operational safety.

The team contributes to the continuous improvement of engineering practices across ESA missions by capturing lessons learned from past and ongoing programmes and by supporting the evolution of engineering handbooks, methods and tools. In particular, we contribute to the development of Failure Detection, Isolation and Recovery methodologies and associated engineering toolchains used to improve mission availability, fault tolerance and operational efficiency.

You will work in a multidisciplinary environment involving systems engineering, reliability, software, operations and mission analysis. You will have the opportunity to analyse real mission operational data and spacecraft anomaly reports, identify recurring patterns and engineering lessons, and contribute to the development of future Failure Detection, Isolation and Recovery concepts and monitoring approaches for ESA missions.

During your internship, you will contribute to the analysis of spacecraft operational history from multiple ESA missions with the objective of extracting actionable lessons learned for future mission designs.

Your activities may include:

• analysing spacecraft anomaly reports, operational events and mission databases from multiple missions;
• identifying failures, false positives, nuisance alarms and operational workarounds associated with Failure Detection, Isolation and Recovery functions;
• assessing the effectiveness of monitoring strategies, recovery actions and autonomous fault management concepts;
• identifying recurring weaknesses, missing observability, excessive complexity or design shortcomings in monitoring and recovery architectures;
• collecting evidence-based lessons learned and mapping them to engineering recommendations for future missions;
• supporting the development and maintenance of a structured database of spacecraft monitors, recovery actions and operational experience;
• contributing to the evolution of engineering tools supporting Failure Detection, Isolation and Recovery design and analysis;
• supporting the consolidation of traceability between anomaly reports, failure modes, monitoring mechanisms and recovery concepts;
• contributing to updates of the ESA SAVOIR FDIR Handbook and associated lessons learned repositories;
• supporting comparative analyses across missions to identify common fault management patterns and best practices;
• participating in technical discussions with system, reliability and operations engineers.

Through this work you will gain practical experience in spacecraft systems engineering, mission operations, fault management, engineering data analysis and knowledge management for complex space systems.

The internship offers a unique opportunity to work with real operational experience from spacecraft missions and contribute directly to improving the robustness and autonomy of future ESA missions.

• Result Orientation
• Operational Efficiency
• Fostering Cooperation
• Relationship Management
• Continuous Improvement
• Forward Thinking

You must be a university student, preferably in your final or second-to-last year of university course at Master's level. In addition, you must be able to prove that you will be 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 ESA Member State language is an asset.

During the interview, your motivation for applying to this role will be explored.

Knowledge and background in one or more of the following areas is an asset:

• Failure Detection, Isolation and Recovery concepts;
• mission operations or spacecraft operations;
• data analysis and large dataset processing;
• aerospace engineering, electrical engineering, computer engineering or a related discipline;
• experience with Python, databases or data analytics tools;
• ability to analyse technical documentation and derive engineering conclusions;
• interest in lessons learned, knowledge management and continuous improvement processes;
• strong analytical and structured thinking skills;
• ability to communicate technical findings clearly in written reports and presentations.

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, religious beliefs, age, disability or other characteristics.

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 [e-mail] .

Important Information and Disclaimer

During the recruitment process, the Agency may request applicants to undergo selection tests.

Applicants must be eligible to access information, technology, and hardware which is subject to European or US export control and sanctions regulations.

The information published on ESA's careers website regarding internship 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

Please note that applications are only considered from nationals of one of the following States: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.