2026 Work Experience Programme at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory
11 Aug 2026
Our 2026 work experience programme at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory has finished for another year. This programme gives young people aged 14-17 the chance to learn about our work, through hands-on activities, tours around the facility and supervisor-guided sessions, over the course of 1-2 weeks. Twenty-three students joined our department this year, undertaking a range of projects from characterising 3D-printed radiation shielding materials to designing and testing the ARIEL Mission cryocooler.
The programme also aims to increase the involvement of underrepresented groups in STEM: overall, 47% of placed students were female or non-binary and 25% of students were from the ‘Wonder’ demographic (at schools in the 40% most deprived areas of the country). In a post-programme survey, 100% of the attendees said that they had the ‘opportunity to contribute meaningfully’, and had ‘learnt things that they would use in the future’.
One participant commented, “I had an amazing time, everybody was very informative and helpful, as well as kind and friendly. People were very knowledgeable and I felt very inspired. The work I did was so much fun and I learnt so many things.” Another commented, “I would love to continue the work I have done and […] come back here for an apprenticeship one day.”
Not only does this programme benefit the students, our staff also get a chance to promote science and engineering, and early career staff get the opportunity to gain management experience and skills. Vivek Mistry, Graduate Software Engineer, took part as a mentor. Reflecting on this opportunity, he gave us a summary of his experience:
“I hosted a one-week work experience placement at the Energy Data Centre. Throughout the week, the student learned about web development.
They were keen to understand what is involved in day-to-day software development and operations, so they contributed to the development of a feature within one of our data integrity validation tools. By the end of the placement, they had developed a strong interest in front-end technologies and spent time experimenting with new user interface ideas and features as part of the ongoing modernisation of the EDC platform.
Mentoring at the 2025 Oxford Spires Work Experience Programme
As part of the placement, they also took part in several site tours. One of these was led by Ryan Carver from STFC Technology, who explained the work he does on the ARIEL project before giving a tour of the laboratories and facilities. This was a great opportunity for both of us to gain a better understanding of the wider organisation and see the variety of work being carried out across different teams and disciplines.
From a personal development perspective, hosting the placement was a valuable experience. As a first-year graduate with limited mentoring experience, it gave me an opportunity to develop my communication and leadership skills by planning activities, providing guidance, and supporting the student’s learning throughout the week. I also found it particularly rewarding to take part in a public engagement activity that helped someone explore software development and gain insight into careers in science and technology.”
Well done to all the students that took part, as well as a huge thank you to the supervisors and public engagement team that made this year’s programme possible, inspiring a future generation of engineers and scientists.
Find out more about the STFC work experience programme here – applications will open in January 2027.
Written by Jessica Yu.
