FOSTER for Industry
Fusion Opportunities in Skills, Training, Education and Research (FOSTER). To achieve our ambitions, we need a community of like-minded organisations and companies across industry.
To achieve its ambitions, FOSTER requires a community of like-minded organisations and companies across industry, who are committed to leverage connections in order to deliver efficiencies, create opportunities, and set the culture of the sector for the future.
With over 4,000 companies now in the supply chain, opportunities are available to enhance skills transfer in and out of the sector. But high competition for skills, both within the fusion sector and from larger and more established adjacent industries, can limit the ability to secure skilled individuals.
Developing an ecosystem where inclusion, collaboration and co-operation co-exist with achieving return on investment and developing tangible intellectual property can help the entire sector expand and grow, delivering both the new ideas and innovations required to bring fusion energy to the grid.
Industrial visiting academic scheme
Visibility of industry professionals in university settings can be a powerful tool for strengthening existing pathways, or the development of new pathways into employment and aligning degree programme strategies to industry need.
This project will set up a new scheme to support visiting lectureships and professorships from professionals in industry, following the model similar to the Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professorships scheme. Each award will last for 3 years and will provide subsistence payments (£10,000 to £15,000 per annum) to support staff in the fusion industry to take up short (c.3 week) positions in universities via a yearly competitive process.
Internships
FOSTER is continuing the highly successful internships programme established by the Fusion Industry Programme. It enables undergraduates to actively contribute to industry and academic projects in fields they are eager to explore as future career paths. To improve access to these opportunities and support those from under-represented groups, FOSTER provides subsistence payments to interns who are successful with their application, which also reduces a company’s financial commitment. There are also widening participation bursaries available. Information about the 2026 scheme will soon be available. Hear what our 2025 interns said about their experience.
STEM returners
UKAEA has partnered with STEM Returners on a new programme to help engineers return to work following a career break.
The 12-week placement programme will be based at Culham Campus, and includes roles in UKAEA’s robotics division, and with UK Industrial Fusion Solutions Ltd (UKIFS), the delivery body for the Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production (STEP) prototype fusion plant to be built at the West Burton site in Nottinghamshire.
STEM Returners will source the candidates for the programme, and will provide career coaching and mentoring throughout the paid placement. For the right candidates, a permanent role will be offered at the end of the placement.
Visit www.stemreturners.com/placements/ to view STEM Returners’ opportunities.
Fusion Engineering Academy
The Fusion Engineering Academy provides professional development training for anyone interested in the multidisciplinary field of fusion energy who holds a STEM degree. It is open for people to attend from the UK and from overseas. It enables people to advance their expertise and deepen their understanding of fusion engineering through a fully immersive experience, a combination of lectures and practical sessions. The Fusion Engineering Academy aims to equip participants with both theoretical knowledge and hands-on experience across key areas of fusion technology and operations.
The Fusion Engineering Academy will run as two blocked weeks and will be held at Culham Campus, Oxford:
- Week 1: 9 – 12 February 2026
- Week 2: 2 – 5 March 2026
The cost of attending is £1600+VAT and includes lunches and one evening meal.
Training opportunities
UKAEA has a rolling programme of courses and training opportunities suitable for professionals from across the fusion sector, such as the new Fusion Engineering Academy and the Tritium Training Course which has proved to be a success in providing world-class development.
Visit our events page for the latest list of courses.
Fusion sector secondment scheme
UKAEA is at the initial scoping stages of a scheme that can help industry partners second skilled workforce to each other more flexibly, in order to cope with the peaks and troughs of skills demands and encourage the development of staff in different working environments. Industry representatives are welcome to suggest ideas as to how this might be achieved practically, and any risks or opportunities they foresee.
Collaboration between industry and academia
FOSTER has a number of projects for industry and academia to collaborate, such as MSc Project Opportunities, and the Industry PhD Support Scheme.
Visit our FOSTER for Academia page.
Fusion sector shared continuous professional development scheme
FOSTER is looking for industry partners interested in creating fusion-specific training modules that could be delivered to cohorts of cross-industry attendees. We are currently identifying the key topic areas and delivery partners.