Description Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) Salary: £24,961 per annum Hours: Full-time, 37 hours Contract Type: Fixed-Term, 12months Location: Science and Technology Facilities Council, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory Harwell, Oxfordshire Closing Date: Sunday, 19th October 2025 Interview Date: Dec 2025 / Jan 2026 Start Date: September 2026 The ISIS Neutron and Muon Source is located at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire and is used for world-leading research in material and biological sciences. The Controls team is responsible for the control software that keeps the ISIS particle accelerators running. The expert crew of operators in the ISIS main control room (MCR) every day use the software we develop and maintain to supervise and control this sophisticated machine. Together we enable hundreds of visiting scientists to conduct their research! We are a small and friendly development team who work in a hybrid way, mixing working in the office and from home. We are experienced working with student developers, providing you with the training and support you need to develop your skills and contribute to our team and ISIS. Brief overview of the scheme STFC’s incredibly diverse range of placements allow you to work alongside world leading engineers, scientists, and technicians in highly collaborative environments. With an STFC Industrial Placement you will become a critical member of the team in which you will be exposed to exciting projects and challenges from the start. We’ll provide challenges that match your skills, and each placement is a unique opportunity to pursue your career interests. You will be supported every step of the way by our dedicated Early Careers Development Team who will also ensure you benefit from a range of personal development opportunities. STFC offers a benefits package crafted to provide an excellent work/life balance including 30 days’ annual leave, 10.5 public and privilege days, Christmas closure and flexible working hours. For more information on our full list of benefits, please visit here. About the role and a summary of key duties & responsibilities Phoebus is the open-source Java software developed by and used to control particle accelerators across the world. At ISIS, it is used by our MCR crew to operate the ISIS accelerators. One role of Phoebus is to monitor equipment across ISIS and alert the crew in the MCR of problems as they arise. False or unnecessary alarms may be manually suppressed by the MCR crew. However, when ISIS is shutdown or only running to one target hundreds of false alarms can be triggered. To address this, you will develop a utility to allow the crew to easily and temporarily suppress alarms from specific areas of ISIS. work to integrate your solution into the open-source Phoebus software. With the experience gained through this work, you will continue to improve the Phoebus user interface for our crew, though development of new tools and improvement of the existing interfaces. Person Specification The below criteria will be scored during Shortlisting (S), Interview (I) or both (S&I). Essential: Studying for a degree in software development or computing discipline (S) Are required or have requested to take an industrial placement year (S) Have the right to live and work in the UK for the duration of the placement (S) Able to commence employment in summer 2026 (S) Experience programming in an object-oriented language, Java or Kotlin would be particularly useful (S&I) Ability to work with other developers in a team (I) Ability to adapt based on feedback from other developers and users (I) Desirable : Good communication and interpersonal skills (S&I) Evidence of interest in web technologies and development frameworks, e.g. React (S&I) Experience with version control, e.g. git, and software development best practice (I) Employee Benefits: 30 days holiday (in addition to 10.5 bank holidays and privilege days). Flexible working hours. An excellent defined average salary pension scheme. Easily accessible public transport links/ free parking. Excellent learning and development opportunities. Cycle to work scheme. Link to more benefits: https://stfccareers.co.uk/rewards-and-benefits/ As this job does not fulfil the UK Government minimum criterion for obtaining sponsored migrant worker status we will be unable to apply for sponsorship for anyone not eligible to work in the UK. At interview, all shortlisted candidates are required to bring with them identification documents and original documents that prove they hold or can obtain the right to work in the UK. You can check your eligibility here: https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa/y Application Guidance Please note that we can only accept a maximum of 2 applications per candidate. Part of our application process involves submitting your CV and a cover letter. Your cover letter should address your suitability for the opportunity based how you meet each essential criteria stated in this advert. Please note that we hold the right to close this vacancy early if a sufficient number of applications have been received. We ask some of the biggest questions in the universe, to answer some of the biggest challenges in the world. Together, our scientists, technologists, engineers and business support team explore the unknown across every field you could think of. And they turn what they find into work that changes the world around us. What could you achieve with the world-leading facilities and experts of one of Europe's largest research organisations by your side? Join us and discover what's possible!