Industrial Placement Antenna Engineer

Location: GB - Luton - Cap. Green 300

Job Description

Your impact

Are you ready to make an impact and gain hands-on experience working on real-world projects from day one?

At Leonardo, we’re looking for industrial placement students who want to be part of something extraordinary—shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety.

Our placements are designed to help you apply your studies in a practical setting, develop your technical skills, and gain valuable insight into how our business operates.

Our Industrial Placement Programme

Our Industrial Placement Programme offers you the chance to spend a year with us, working on meaningful projects alongside subject matter experts, within multidisciplinary teams, and across the product lifecycle. You’ll receive a salary of £26,228, with coaching and support from a dedicated team to help you achieve both your placement objectives and personal development goals.

Successful completion of an Industrial Placement with Leonardo may also lead to an offer on our Graduate Development Programme.

During your placement, we encourage you to spend at least three days each week on site to integrate with your team and maximise your learning experience. This Opportunity is based in Luton.

What You'll Do

As an Industrial Placement Antenna Engineer, you'll join a team delivering world-leading Electronic Warfare capabilities that protect fast jets, UAVs, naval vessels and land platforms operating in some of the world's most demanding environments.

As part of our Antenna Engineering team, you'll support the development of high-performance antenna systems used within advanced Electronic Warfare solutions.

Your activities will include

• Supporting the design and development of innovative antenna solutions for a range of defence platforms
• Using electromagnetic (EM) simulation tools to model and analyse antenna performance
• Supporting the development of antenna technologies operating at frequencies up to 40GHz and beyond
• Conducting laboratory testing, measurement and validation using specialist RF equipment and anechoic chamber facilities
• Analysing technical data and presenting findings to engineering teams and stakeholders
• Collaborating with multidisciplinary teams to integrate antenna solutions into larger systems
• Contributing to technical documentation, design reviews and customer deliverables

Your Industrial Placement Project

Approximately 50% of your placement will be dedicated to a cohort-led Industrial Placement project. Working alongside other placement students from different engineering disciplines, you'll define, manage and deliver a substantial project from concept through to final presentation.

This experience will help you develop project management, leadership, teamwork and stakeholder engagement skills alongside your technical development.

What We're Looking For

You should be studying towards a degree in

• Electronic Engineering
• Electrical Engineering
• Physics or Applied Physics
• Engineering Physics
• Mathematics or Applied Mathematics
• Communications Engineering
• Space Engineering
• Robotics Engineering
• Computer Communication and Networks
• Cyber Security or related STEM disciplines

We'd also like to see

• An interest in electromagnetics, RF systems, antenna design or communication systems
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Strong communication and teamwork skills
• A willingness to learn and take ownership of challenging tasks

The Placement Experience

You'll benefit from

• Hands-on experience on real engineering projects
• Mentoring from experienced engineers
• Technical and professional skills development
• A dedicated Industrial Placement cohort project
• Exposure to multiple engineering disciplines and technologies
• Opportunities to build your professional network across Leonardo

Security Clearance

Many of our roles are subject to security and export control restrictions set by UK Government Security requirements and customer obligations.  As a result, and in line with the UK Government Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) requirements, all successful applicants will be asked to provide evidence of identity, eligibility to work in the UK, criminal record declaration information and employment and/or education history verification for the previous five years.

For staff operating in more sensitive posts, there is an additional range of personnel security controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV).  As part of this process, a range of factors may be considered, including an individual's background, travel history, nationality, previous nationalities held and other information relevant to the vetting assessment.

To be eligible for National Security Vetting at SC level, applicants will generally be expected to have continuously resided in the UK for the previous five years. For DV clearance, this is typically ten years.  In some circumstances, time spent overseas may be accepted, with additional overseas checks.  Additional vetting requirements may apply upon appointment.

For more information and guidance please visit: https://careers.uk.leonardo.com/gb/en/security-and-vetting

Why join us

At Leonardo, our people are at the heart of everything we do, our teams are key contributors in shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety.

We offer a comprehensive, company-funded benefits package that supports your wellbeing, career development, and work–life balance. Whether you're looking to grow professionally, care for your health, or plan for the future, we’re here to help you thrive.

• Time to recharge: Enjoy generous leave with the opportunity to accrue up to 12 additional flexi-