Senior Project Engineer

Company Description

By 2050, the planet could be using twice as much electricity compared to today. Are you interested in contributing and helping to shape the future of the world's energy? If so, read on.

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 for ground breaking advancements. Our goal is to bring fusion electricity to the grid, supported by tomorrow's power stations. In pursuit of our mission, UKAEA embraces core values :
Innovative, Committed, Trusted, and Collaborative.

• Outstanding defined benefit pension scheme, details of which can be found at the end of this advert.
• Corporate bonus scheme up to 7 % and a Relocation allowance (if eligible).
• Flexible working options including family friendly policies and the right to request flexible working from the start of your employment.
• Employee Assistance Programme and trained Mental Health First Aiders,
• Generous annual leave allowance starting with 25 days, plus 3 days Christmas closure and 2.5 privilege days, in addition to UK bank holidays
• Wide range of career development opportunities
• A vibrant culture committed to equality and being fully inclusive

For a step-by-step overview of how we hire from application to offer please see our Recruitment Process page :  / join-us / recruitment-process

The salary for this role is £56,596 (inclusive of a Specialist Allowance) . Onsite working is expected for 3 days each week, however, we actively support requests for flexible working.

This role is based at the following site :
Rotherham or Culham.

This role requires employees to complete an online Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS), including The Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) checks for criminal convictions and possibly a search of open source data.

We are seeking a skilled Senior Project Engineer to provide leadership on engineering projects of moderate scale and significance, driving innovation and influencing the direction of the organisation and its collaborators. You will manage and deliver complex engineering projects, from proposing and defining project scopes to leading multidisciplinary teams focused on enhancement programs, future fusion devices, and related technology applications. This role involves coordinating teams to develop technical solutions, designs, and resolving critical operational challenges, while providing expert guidance and direction throughout the project lifecycle to ensure successful outcomes.

If you have strong communication and technical writing skills, excellent interpersonal abilities, and experience supervising others, we'd love to hear from you.

• Provide technical leadership across UKAEA projects, managing medium-scale projects independently or leading sections of larger, complex initiatives while acting as a key technical reference for internal teams and external stakeholders.
• Ensure engineering excellence by developing and implementing high‑quality technical processes, designs, and procedures throughout all project phases.
• Deliver successful outcomes by meeting project milestones, quality, scope, budget, and time objectives in collaboration with project and work package managers.
• Oversee technical analysis and reporting, ensuring designs are validated, reviewed, and well‑documented through reports, presentations, and stakeholder communications.
• Lead and support teams by mentoring engineers, fostering collaboration, and maintaining effective communication across UKAEA and partner organisations.

Further details about responsibilities and requirements can be found in the full Job Description.

• A relevant engineering degree of equivalent
• Working towards or achieved Chartered Engineer status with a suitable professional institution
• Ability to perform exploratory design calculations using first principles
• A good working knowledge of a broad range of engineering disciplines
• Experien…