Working Student, Prototyping

Starforge

Part-time

Garching, Germany

Posted on Oct 12, 2026

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Munich, Garching · On-site · Part-time up to 20h/week, up to 26 weeks per year

About Starforge

Starforge is on a mission to make fusion energy a practical utility by factory manufacturing modular, fleet-deployable fusion reactors. We are fusion's Henry Ford moment. Our first reactor product line, Unit One, is a 250 MWe spherical tokamak, built from demountable high-temperature superconducting magnets and designed in modular blocks so that every component can be factory-manufactured as well as replaced on site. Our team comes from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics, MIT, Commonwealth Fusion Systems, Tokamak Energy, KIT, Lilium, and GE.

Come and join us in building the future.

Build Unit One's magnets as our Working Student

Our magnet lab tests the building blocks of Unit One's magnets: superconducting tape, soldered joints and small coils at cryogenic temperatures. There is always more to prepare, build, measure and analyse than our engineers have hands for. This is your chance to do real work on fusion hardware while you study, and see your contribution end up in a reactor design. You will work in the magnet team on whatever the current test campaign needs most. You will report to the COO and work day to day with our team in Garching.

What you'll do

Prepare samples and help run experiments on superconducting tapes, joints, and small coils

Help build and modify test fixtures and lab set-ups

Write scripts to process and plot test data

Take on small CAD or simulation tasks based on the prototyping schedule

Document set-ups, procedures and results

What we're looking for

Enrolled at a German university in physics, mechanical, electrical or materials engineering or a related field

Hands-on experience from a lab course, workshop, student team or project

Basic Python or MATLAB for data analysis

Careful, safe working attitude in a lab with initiative to anticipate team needs

Attention to detail in technical documentation and record keeping

Clear written and spoken English

Bonus points:

Lab work with vacuum or cryogenics

Prior design, build, and programming of data acquisition or instrumentation rigs

Hands on experience fabricating parts, either in shop or 3D printed

CAD experience

What we offer

Real responsibility on fusion magnet hardware, with engineers who take time to teach

Flexible working hours around exam times and your studies

Option to write your thesis based on your lab work

Makerspace access

We welcome applications from students at any stage of their degree. If you meet the must-haves and the work excites you, apply.

How to apply

Send your CV, current transcript and a short note on one hands-on project you did, and what you would do differently today, via this form.