Here you will find answers to all of your questions regarding this year's Young Professional Event!
What is the YPE?
The Young Professional Event (YPE) is an exciting annual conference at ESA, offering young professionals a blend of talks, workshops, and social activities. Specifically, we are offering social activities on Thursday and Saturday, while Friday will be filled with everything else. We are also hosting a gala on Friday evening. See the timetable for more information.
The YPE is a fantastic opportunity to connect with fellow professionals from all ESA sites!
When and where is the YPE 2024 taking place?
The YPE 2024 is on Friday, May 31, 2024, at ESTEC in Noordwijk, The Netherlands. Additional optional activities will take place on Thursday, May 30 and on Saturday, June 1st.
Information about how to reach ESTEC can be found on the Mission Request System page and at the following links:
Who can join the YPE?
The YPE is designed by and for young professionals across all ESA sites, including Staff Members, Contractors, Young Graduate Trainees (YGTs), National Trainees (NTs), Research Fellows (RFs), Junior Professionals (JPs), and Interns. All current ESA workforce members on the day of the YPE are welcome to join without any age limit. However, only people with a confirmed registration can join.
How do I come into ESTEC site if I am not an ESA Staff?
For ESA staff such as YGTs, RFs and JPs, you will be able to simply use your ESA badge to enter into ESTEC. For interns, contractors and national trainees who do not have a duty station assigned to ESTEC, we will use your information to be able to set up a visitor badge for the days you will be on site. We will contact you closer to the day of the YPE to ensure you are able to access ESTEC for the activities you have signed up for.
Can I attend if I don't work on deep space exploration (theme of the year)?
Absolutely! The YPE welcomes professionals from all fields. While this year's focus is on Deep Space Exploration, the event is inclusive of professionals regardless of their specific area of work.
How do I sign up for the YPE?
The registration form is available here on our event page. Once you complete the registration process, you will receive a notification stating that your registration is pending confirmation. We will approve registrations starting March 20th. Space in Erasmus is limited, seats will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis for each session individually. Make sure to queue up early enough for each session that you are interested in! Standing options will be available and we are also working on setting up a live transmission to a nearby room to extend capacity. You will be notified by email once your registration is confirmed. If you've registered for extra activities or volunteering, you will receive further information.
If your plans change and you can no longer attend, please ensure you update your registration using the personalized link provided after signing up.
Why do I need to use Indico to sign up and not a Microsoft Form?
In the past years, we have used forms to have people sign up at the YPE. This year, we decided to put in place this Indico platform. It allows us, the organisers, to sort through the participants in a much faster way and reduces manual work on our side. Additionally, since you have a personalised link to your registration to the YPE, it allows you to modify your registration should you change your mind about a workshop or choose to not attend the YPE anymore. It also avoids duplicating registrations.
May 31st is a holiday for ESOC, can I still attend?
ESOC professionals on holiday can still join by requesting a mission. The holiday will be converted into an extra leave day if approved. Plan early to make the most of the long weekend at ESTEC!
As the event will take place on Friday, you can enter a mission for this day and when the mission is completed, you will get a reimbursement on your annual leave account (one day – Friday). You have to go to HR Space - your employee file - Staff requests - overtime. As Thursday is not officially part of the event, no compensation will be granted. After the event: Get your mission claimed, so that you have a claimed/settled mission form from MAS. As a next step (Step 3, in HR space) use the workflow and update the dates and upload the mission claim form (Status claimed or settled). To get to the Edit mode, scroll down and use 'update'.
I am not based at ESTEC, how do I request a mission?
If you're not at ESTEC and working on May 31, 2024, request a mission with approval from your line manager and HR. To find out how to request a mission, please check out the Mission Request System page.
What if I am an intern?
Interns may attend with manager approval, coverage by personal insurance, and at their own cost. ESOC interns benefit from the holiday on May 31, requiring no line manager approval. If you do not have an ESA e-mail address, please use the one known to ESA as we get a list of interns of each site to double-check.
How do I sign up for a workshop?
When you register there is an option to express interest in specific workshops. Once these workshops are finalised we will be in touch by email with more information. Please be aware that places in the workshops are limited and allocated in order of registration. Don't worry if you don't get a space in the workshop, as you will still be able to enjoy the talks that are running concurrently.
What is the poster session and how does it work?
During the YPE you will be able to exhibit your project as a poster in a dedicated area for all the attendees. The session will start with each participant giving a short pitch of their poster, after which the attendees can freely walk around to admire all posters. Your poster can be about any topic you worked on, whether you work in science, technology, education or business, everyone is welcome. We will provide a template and extra guidance for those who sign up to exhibit. The attendees can vote for their favourite poster during the event, and the winner will get a special prize!
You can register your interest in exhibiting a poster on the registration form.
What is the ED&I workshop?
The Equality, Diversity and Inclusion workshop is an optional workshop held on Thursday 30th May. The Young ESA working group will run a session on the theme of LGBTQ+ inclusion. The workshop will include guest speakers, interactive group discussions, and the opportunity to dive into the challenges faced by the LGBTQ+ community, both in ESA and in the space sector in general.
What are the lab tours and how do I sign up?
On Thursday 30th we will offer tours of some of the ESTEC labs. Unfortunately due to space constraints we have to limit registrations to those not working at ESTEC and places will be allocated on a first come first served basis. You can express interest in a tour as part of the registration process. Once you have expressed interest, keep an eye on your emails for more information.
What if I want to attend both the Lab tours and the ED&I workshop?
This is possible! Please express your interest for both activities in the registration form and we will make sure to give you the lab tour slot that is prior to the workshop. The lab tour runs twice for an hour so we can increase the number of participants. You will be assigned to only one of the two ESTEC Guided Lab tours blocks in the schedule. Keep an eye on your emails for more information.
What is the Space Slam?
A space slam is an event where presenter compete to present their work or research in a fun way. At the end, the audience decides who has the coolest, funniest, or most insightful presentation of the evening by way of noise - the presentation with the loudest applause is the winner.
We will be hosting the first All ESA Space Slam on Thursday 30th May. If you are interested in presenting you can sign-up on the registration form and if not make sure you join us for an evening of exciting talks!
What food options are available during the YPE?
ESTEC has several food outlets that are open throughout the YPE. Lunch will be available to buy from the main canteen, Lunch pad, and ESCAPE. You will also be able to buy smaller meals such as fries from ESCAPE on Thursday evening. See here for more information.
Are there extra social activities?
Yes! Optional ESTEC lab visits, a YPE Gala, and extra activities over the weekend. If you are from a site other than ESTEC you can express interest in an ESTEC lab tour on the registration form. The rest of the activities are open to participants from all sites. You can sign up and buy a ticket for the Gala directly in the registration form here. The social activities taking place on Saturday will have registration done separately via email. The interest form was sent out and can be filled out here.
How do I deal with accommodation issues?
If your mission doesn't cover accommodation, our ESTEC professionals will help with a couch surfing system. Please fill in this form if you are travelling and are looking for a place to stay. Please fill in this form if you live near ESTEC and are interested in hosting someone.
Get in touch with Marion Burnichon or Salvi Verma if you need help with accommodation.
What is the gala?
The Gala is an optional social event that will be held in the evening of the 31st of May to close the day of the YPE. It is set to take place in a Leiden city center venue. This presents a wonderful opportunity to connect with everyone beyond the confines of ESTEC in a semi-formal setting, complete with complimentary drinks (non-alcoholic included), snacks and music. Please note: while the event is outside of ESTEC, it falls under the umbrella of ESA, Young ESA, and the YPE. Any inappropriate behavior will be addressed and, if necessary, reported to HR, potentially resulting in professional and legal consequences.
Dress code: Semi-formal
How do I register and pay for the gala?
In the registration form, there is a section at the bottom where you can indicate your attendance at the Gala. If you choose "yes," you are required to make the payment for the ticket within 5 working days. Failure to do so within this timeframe will result in the removal of your Gala registration, freeing up the spot for others. It's important to note that your registration for the rest of the YPE will remain unaffected if you choose not to pay for the Gala.
To complete the payment, please use the banking information provided in the email you receive after registering. Make sure to include the following payment reference: "<First Name> <Last Name> YPE 2024 Gala" if the character limit allows. If not, please include at least the initial of your first name and your last name. This helps us identify who has successfully paid for the Gala ticket.
Why do I have to pay for the gala?
Last year, we held a networking event at the ESTEC restaurant which was included in the budget of the YPE. This year, we would like to have a longer, fancier and more fun event outside of ESTEC to allow YPs to get to know each other in more informal setting. The private event incurs additional costs as we are providing food, drinks and music. We're striving to make it affordable by putting the bare minimum ticket price to make sure we are able to fulfill the minimum turnover fee for the room. We will input money from our budget to make the event as enjoyable as possible! Stay tuned for more details on this exciting event!
There are no more tickets available for the Gala, how can I get one?
If the Gala is sold out, this means that all the spots we have opened up have filled up. We have given 5 working days for people to pay for their ticket. If they pay for the ticket, the spot will not re-open. If they do not pay for the ticket, the spot will open back up. You will not need to go back and edit your registration. We will contact those registered, one by one, going down the list of the first registrations received after the last gala ticket could be taken and propose to them to buy a ticket.
What is the HR Session?
The YPE team wants to organise a Q&A session with the HR team in charge of ESA Entry-Level Programmes to discuss any HR-related subject you want. This session will be held on Teams on April, the 30th. As no other sessions will accept HR-related questions during the YPE, please take time to come and ask your questions. This session will be held on Teams for all young professionals of all ESA sites. The invitation will be sent during the first or second week of April.
Where can I find information about the previous editions of the YPE?
We’re ready for this year’s Young Professional Event!
I would like to help organise the YPE, who should I contact?
For more information contact Marion Burnichon or Salvi Verma.
I still have some unanswered questions, who should I contact?
Your site representatives may have the answer! If not, please contact Marion Burnichon or Salvi Verma.
