Careers and volunteering
Looking for local career opportunities? Would you like to be more involved with CSES or STEM volunteering?
Read on for job vacancies, voluntary roles, training and other professional development opportunities.
If you're just starting on your career, check out our careers and work experience pages for general advice and information from local employers. Or, search local vacancies with our corporate members.
If you'd like to volunteer for CSES or the education sector generally
- Become a member of CSES.
- Register as a STEM Ambassador.
- Get in touch with us directly if you'd like to work with us.
Any time spent volunteering counts as Continuing Professional Development (CPD).
Refer to your professional institution or the Engineering Council for details of CPD requirements, if applicable.
To support a project for Primary and Secondary School Students: September 2021 to June 2022
We are launching a major new science, technology and computing project for primary and secondary schools.
We are looking for volunteers (STEM Ambassadors) who will help us by working as a champion to support student teams with the following:
- Collect weather and air quality information (equipment will be supplied).
- Interpret, publish and share data in real-time with other schools – opportunity for coding and web development.
- Undertake a survey of student, staff or parent perceptions of air pollution.
- Design and carry out a scientific investigation into clean air, nitrous oxides or particulate matter. Or you can discuss your own idea with your CSES School Champion to develop your own unique study.
Do you have a few hours a month to support this exciting project?
Career development and volunteering opportunities with CSES
As it enters its centenary season, CSES (Chelmsford Science and Engineering Society) is looking for new volunteers to grow the core team and drive forward its recently launched strategy.
Are you looking for an opportunity to develop your career beyond the immediate day job? Perhaps you have some time to spare and would like to spend it supporting a local charity? Or do you enjoy volunteering for STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) education and would like to be more involved?
This is an excellent chance to make a real difference to our community. CSES volunteers actively contribute to, and influence, what goes on locally by representing a respected body and working with a wide range of other organisations, including local government, the education sector and businesses. It is also a chance to grow your network, whether personal or professional.
Remember: any time spent volunteering for CSES counts as Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and is a perfect complement – or coda (we know plenty of retired people enjoy this sort of thing!) – to a career in the STEAM or education sectors. We are already affiliated in some way with many local employers – and want to build relationships with more – working with us is good for your progression and employment prospects.
The British Science Association is looking to recruit a talented and organised Festival Operations Officer to help us plan and deliver the British Science Festival 2021.
The British Science Festival is Europe’s longest-standing science festival which connects people with researchers from across the scientific spectrum. It offers an inspiring programme of free events to the public over five days, attracting around 15,000 visitors. The talks, workshops and drop-in events span a diverse range of subjects that encompass science in the broadest sense.
Full-time (35 hours per week). Fixed-term contract terminating on 17 September 2021. Preferred start date: 6 April 2021.
To apply, submit an application here. You will need to provide a CV and a covering letter. The closing date for applications is 23.59, Sunday 7 March 2021. First interviews are likely to take place on Wednesday 17 and Thursday 18 March 2021.
Main Duties:
- Act as the main logistical point of contact for Festival event organisers/speakers.
- Support the Events & Festival Operations Manager in building and managing the Festival Masterplan.
- Recruit, train, and oversee the temporary Festival Assistants.
- Lead on Festival accommodation administration.
- Oversee the integrity of Festival-related data.
- Coordinate the administration of the event’s Risk Assessment forms.
- Manage staff and goods transport (including staff travel bookings, coaches, parking facilities, supplier delivery details etc.)
- Monitor the Festival Inbox along with members of the Engagement Team.
- Attend meetings and site visits in Chelmsford in the run-up to the Festival.
- Support the Festival on-site event management and delivery as required.
- Other duties as reasonably required by the line manager.
Read more: Festival Operations Officer opportunity at The British Science Association
CVC Components Ltd, formally known as The Chelmer Valve Co Ltd, are looking to recruit a new engineer.
Due to the increase of reverse-engineering work undertaken (currently subcontracted out), CVC Components has taken the decision to start a new in-house department.
Start date: ASAP. To apply, please contact
Main Duties
- Analysing working and non-working samples, in order to rebuild a working PCB.
- You must be able to perform functional testing, fault finding, reverse engineering and be able to repair a variety of Electronic PCBs.
- Record failures and document any repair work undertaken.
- Hand-assembly, final testing and packing of completed Electronic Systems.
- Generating test results for in-house records and for accompanying customer deliveries.
- Generating and amending test documentation as required.
- Ensuring up-to-date calibration of test equipment.
- Fault-finding to component level on PCBs.
- You will be required to conduct basic board-level component training once a month for sales staff.
Read more: Electronic Engineer opportunity at CVC Components
Calling all technologists, coders, STEM ambassadors, graduates and hobbyists!
As part of Future City and Essex 2020, Southend Tech is organising the Raspberry Jam STEAM Festival – a programme of online events taking place over half term.
Southend Tech are looking for volunteers that can deliver talks or presentations (5, 15 or 50 mins), run workshops, show interesting tech or coding projects and to take part in or shout about the festival in general.
Perhaps you are from industry and have some cutting edge tech to show off, maybe you're a hardcore hobbyist with an innovative home project or skills to share.
The festival aims to cater for a range of audiences so your activity could be pitched at beginners, children/families, girls only, those with advanced skills or adult only.
All talks and workshops will be delivered online between Oct 24th and Nov 1st, mostly via Zoom. Sessions can take place morning, afternoon or evening (Southend Tech can plan around your availability).
Read more: Raspberry Jam STEAM Festival – call out for volunteers
Can you help with Essex Record Office's oral history project?
'Communicating Connections' is an oral history based community heritage project funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, with contributions from Essex 2020 and the Friends of Historic Essex. It will explore the heritage of the Marconi Company, a telecommunications and engineering company based in Chelmsford, by collecting and archiving oral history interviews with past employees of the company. Chelmsford is known locally as the 'birthplace of radio', so we want to share this heritage with the local and wider community.
We're still looking for oral history interviewers and interviewees.
Full training in oral history interviewing will be provided by the Oral History Society and further support will be available throughout the project so there's no need for prior oral history experience.
Read more: Volunteers and participants sought for Communicating Connections
- Network and Systems Engineer Job Opportunity at SEA-KIT
- More FREE Digital Skills Training – this time by Google
- FREE Digital Skills Training by Facebook
- Mentors sought for Teledyne e2v schools' engineering challenge
- Go4SET mentor sought for Woodlands School (Apr-Jul 2019)
- CSES is looking for a new Secretary
- Innovation webinar series (IEEE)
- CSES seeks video editor
- Mentors sought for Rocketry Challenge 2018
- CSES seeks Social Secretary