GE Aerospace Research & Development - 12 Month Placement

Job Description SummaryIn the 12-month Research & Development (R&D) Placement, you will work on R&D projects with multi-disciplinary and international teams. This is a Research Engineering role where you'll develop the next generation of projects.
Job Description
About GE Aerospace
Are you ready to see your future take flight? At GE Aerospace, we are advancing aviation technologies for today and tomorrow. Your work will contribute to the production of advanced jet engines, components, and integrated systems that power commercial and military aircraft. You’ll be part of a team that embraces your drive, your curiosity, and your unique ideas and perspectives. Most importantly, you’ll share in our pride and purpose that affects the lives of millions around the world!
Roles and Responsibilities
In the 12-month Research & Development (R&D) Placement, you will work on R&D projects with multi-disciplinary and international teams. This is a Research Engineering role where you'll develop the next generation of projects. The placement will be a mix of hands-on, analytical & testing, working with a breadth of engineers providing you with exposure to the full life cycle.
We have several types of roles within this area; here is a snapshot of them:
Advanced Technology Organisation (ATO) (Cheltenham) - you will work on R&D and advanced technology projects in multi-disciplinary, international teams to help invent the future of flight and develop GE Aerospace’s next-generation products. The role blends design, analytical work, and hands-on prototyping and testing, giving you exposure to a wide range of engineering disciplines while maturing new technologies and products for commercialization and flight in roughly 2–5 years. You could work in areas such as embedded software, electronics and electrical hardware, prototype systems design and testing, and modelling and simulation across Power and Avionics products, joining an agile project team where tasks, support needs, and progress are discussed in daily meetings.
Analysis team - R&D Performance Engineering (Dowty) - you will work on R&D projects in propeller aerodynamics and acoustics with multi‑disciplinary, international teams, gaining exposure to the full lifecycle of propeller systems through a mix of hands‑on work, analytical tasks and testing. You will develop new design and analysis methods, run advanced CFD simulations to predict propeller performance, and validate results using wind tunnel data from high‑frequency pressure sensors, strain gauges and optical diagnostics such as PIV and SPR, in order to demonstrate aerodynamic and acoustic benefits of next‑generation propeller designs. Throughout the year you will be supported by structured goals, coaching and mentoring from your people leader and project team, present your findings regularly to experts in the UK, US and Germany, and may have opportunities to contribute to propeller or component test campaigns.
You will be guided by structured goals and objectives and will have responsibility to deliver on inspiring projects supported by your People Leader and team around you. We will guide you throughout the year to ensure you make the best of your GE Aerospace experience. Your People Leader will offer coaching and mentoring, and you will be provided with the opportunity to connect with other placement students across the UK.
This opportunity is offered in our Cheltenham and Gloucester (Dowty, a GE Aerospace company) sites, during the process we will ask you to share your location and role preferences.
With over 1,700 employees, GE Aerospace based in Cheltenham is one of the largest sites outside the USA and a major contributor to the local economy.
Our heritage dates back to 1940 yet our technology is cutting-edge. Located in the heart of Gloucestershire, the Power Distribution & Controls (PD&C) site focuses on the design, development and manufacture of state-of-the-art aircraft power distribution and avionics systems for the global aviation industry. Our customers include all major aerospace manufacturers - covering commercial, business jet and military applications. The scale and complexity of engineering projects offer our employees unique opportunities to work on major international projects, developing critical aircraft systems that will be relied on by many people for decades to come.
At GE Aerospace we strive to be an employer of choice by offering internships, apprenticeships, mentoring and staff development programmes that create a workplace where everyone can be themselves and achieve their full potential.
Innovation, a commitment to engineering excellence and leadership development places GE Aerospace based in Cheltenham as a pioneering force in building the future of flight.
Dowty, a GE Aerospace company, is based in Gloucestershire. It is a world-leading supplier of electronically controlled, composite propeller systems for A wide range of civil and military applications, including commercial airliners and military airlifters to multi-role seaplanes and marine hovercraft.
Key programs include the Lockheed Martin C-130J, the De-Haviland, Dash 8-400 and the Leonardo C-27J.
Operated by a highly skilled workforce, Dowty’s’ in-house production expertise for composite blades includes application of resin transfer moulding processes, which have been continuously evolved and perfected since 1976; and the use of braiding machines that rapidly and accurately apply the blades’ fibre outer layers.
If you are passionate about R&D, we would like to hear from you.
This placement role is an intended pipeline to our Edison Engineering Development Programme (EEDP) based in Cheltenham. Towards the end of the placement year, we will open graduate applications for our current placement students with an aim to secure a role prior to the end of their placement year.
Meaning, you can head back into your final year at university with a graduate job offer in hand. All you need to do is secure a 2,1 degree or above!
If you love technology and desire a career in Engineering, EEDP is for you.
Edison Engineers understand and apply engineering fundamentals in the business environment and design, analyse, and test the technology t