Description

If selected for this position, under the direct authority of the Head of the STEM Learning and Inspiration Unit, your main responsibility will relate to the educational and/or inspirational activities of the ESA Education Programme, which targets children and young people between 3 and 18 years of age, directly or through their educators.

The ESA Education Programme is structured around two synergetic blocks:

Learn with Space: Initiatives to support educators from formal and non-formal education venues working with groups ranging from young children to young people of upper secondary school age, such as professional educator training, didactics resources, interdisciplinary school projects, thematic workshops and hackathons, and an international community of practice. Such activities are implemented at national level through the ESA ESERO project (www.esa.int/esero), a network of dedicated national offices and consortiums of partners established by ESA in its Member States and Associate States.

Let Space Inspire You: Inspirational events, role modelling, career awareness initiatives and access to space experts for young people and their families to attract them to space and STEM and help them to understand its importance for society and the economy and, in doing so, help to break down diversity barriers, boost accessibility and promote sustainability for a better future.

Duties

Your duties will include one or more of the following specific tasks:

• Ensuring and/or contributing to the steering, programmatic and geographic evolution and management of the ESERO framework project from the contractual, organisational and programmatic viewpoints, including establishing and managing relationships with the ESA Member States’ and Associate States’ delegations, national stakeholders and partners as requested;
• Ensuring and/or contributing to the didactics activities of the STEM Learning and Inspiration Programme, including related procurement actions and compliance with ESA security and data protection procedures, such as teacher/educator training activities, didactics resources, interdisciplinary school projects and the teacher/educator community of practice;
• Ensuring and/or contributing to the inspirational activities of the STEM Learning and Inspiration Programme in close coordination with the ESERO network, the ESA Communication Department and the ESA Human Resources Department, and the relevant ESA space programme areas, including events, hackathons, fairs and conferences;
• Ensuring and/or contributing to the promotion and outreach of the entire ESA Education Programme through the ESA Education promotion channels and production means and other appropriate outreach channels in compliance with the relevant ESA communication and branding guidelines, representing the ESA Education Office in meetings and public forums as requested;
• Maintaining a thorough awareness/knowledge of the STEM education systems for the age range of 3 to 18 years in the formal, non-formal and informal sectors and their evolution and trends in ESA Member States and Associate States;
• Identifying opportunities for new developments, partnerships or relationships (internal and external to ESA) beneficial to the achievement of the STEM Learning and Inspiration Programme objectives, and managing such partnerships as applicable and requested;
• Pursuing all relevant synergies within the STEM Learning and Inspiration Programme, and within the entire Education Programme as applicable, and closely coordinating with the relevant area responsible;
• Responding to direct contacts and requests from education stakeholders in your field of responsibility;
• Supervising and coordinating the personnel and services under your area of responsibility, including ESA early-career professionals and trainees;
• Actively contributing to the continuous development and evolution of the ESA Education Programme and strategy.
• Contributing to the Education Office’s reporting duties.

Technical competencies

Behavioural competencies

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

Education

A master’s degree in a scientific and/or technical field is required.
Additional (university) qualification(s) in STEM teaching and/or STEM education are a strong asset; qualification in scientific communication is an additional asset.

Additional requirements

You should have:

• a minimum of five years of substantial and practical experience in the planning, management and coordination of international STEM education projects and educational inspiration/outreach activities for the age range of 3 to 18 years;
• proven experience in establishing and maintaining relations and collaboration with both ESA and external partners and stakeholders, including governmental and public authorities, and handling sensitive information;
• strong problem-solving skills to deal with day-to-day operational challenges, together with demonstrated planning and organisational skills and the ability to set priorities, present practical solutions both orally and in writing, manage challenging situations proactively and constructively, and be customer-focused;
• the ability to work in a team and have the potential to coordinate individuals or a team in a project setting and work in a self-directed manner while maintaining good internal coordination.

A sound knowledge of the International Space Station’s operations and procedures is an asset.