Pathways to Space: Finding a career in the space sector
- 25th Aug 2023
- Author: Grace Davis
They think you have to go to university, study physics and become an astronaut or rocket scientist. While that is perfectly valid option, it’s not the story for most of the people working in the UK space sector. How do I know this is the case? I’m Em, I work for the National Space Academy and I’m not a super genius. In fact, I got mostly E grades at A-level.
This post is the first in a new series from the National Space Academy looking at all the various jobs available in the space sector, and the different routes you can take to get there. The only requirement needed to start working in the space sector is a love of space. As long as you think the work being done in and around space is useful and interesting, you’ll find a career that’s right for you, and a path to get there.
This series will look at a huge variety of pathways from Postgraduate university study, to options for those leaving school at 16, from changing careers later in life, to vocational courses and more. The National Space Academy also has a series of videos from people working across the space sector discussing their roles and experiences, which is a great place to start if you’re thinking about what careers might be right for you.
Our “Find Your Space!” resources provide a package of information for students and teachers about careers. The videos in this package are brutally honest looks at the different career paths from people currently working in the space sector. The videos can be watched as a standalone resource or used as part of a Mini Careers Event (find resources for how to create this here too!): https://nationalspaceacademy.org/what-we-do/careers-resources
The resources mentioned above were designed for teachers to use with secondary age students, however they are still an excellent resource for younger audiences, home-school groups, individual students and those looking to change career later in life. If you’re looking to do some more research about careers yourself, why not check out our YouTube channel for more information: https://www.youtube.com/c/NationalSpaceAcademy
The National Space Academy runs a range of masterclasses, careers conferences and space camps for schools. These are a great way of giving your students a closer look at what it actually takes to work in the space sector. More details about our offerings are available on our website https://nationalspaceacademy.org/what-we-do
We’ll be releasing posts in this series over the coming weeks, so make sure you’re following us on social media to hear about any updates. To properly kick off the series we’re releasing a second post alongside this one discussing Foundation Years & Foundation Degrees – click to read it now!