Each year the conference is run by UKSEDS and hosted by a UK university. Held over the course of an entire weekend in the Spring, you can look forward to talks on the engineering of spacecraft, the science of their payloads, or the latest astronomical observation technology and its results. Alongside these sessions UKSEDS runs a full space research and industrial exhibition, a room full of stalls and representatives ready to speak to you and answer your questions on graduate jobs, internships and postgraduate research. Each year representatives from the top employers in the space industry and universities attend in force, looking for you, the next generation of space engineers, scientists and researchers. The conference provides the opportunity for you to speak directly to employers, ideal if you are looking for a graduate job or industrial placement. Or, if you are considering a postgraduate course such as an MSc or PhD, you can chat to the academics who developed some of the biggest space missions that the UK has been responsible for.

Our biggest supporters are the biggest names in UK Space: Astrium, SSTL; and for international work, HESpace and VEGA, to name just a few. You will also have the chance investigate other space-related opportunities: internships and research placements such as the ISP Winter School in Kiruna, Sweden; or the ISU Space Studies Programme, held each summer in a different location around the world.

On the lighter side, as a student society we run socials during the conference, giving you the chance to meet the other UKSEDS members from across the country, meet UKSEDS alumni, or just catch up with members met at previous conferences. The conference is also the platform we use to host our AGM, so if you want to contribute to the society through working as a committee member, this is your chance to put yourself forward!

We have a dedicated website for the conference where you can find details on the speakers, sponsors and exhibitors at the 2012 conference, held at the University of Kent, reachable above.