Student Assistant: Future Data Infrastructure of Smart Grids

The role is for a Student Assistant to work on the Future Data Infrastructure of Smart Grids. The company, ETH Zurich, is involved in the Grid2050 and NCCR Automation projects, focusing on building a high-performance, secure, and fault-tolerant data infrastructure for energy research. This infrastructure integrates real-world electricity grid measurements, smart meter data, and actuator control into a single ecosystem for large-scale experimentation. The main day-to-day responsibilities include developing and maintaining data infrastructure. This involves working in containerd environments to ensure the security, availability, scalability, and accountability of servers. The role also includes enhancing and extending data and command transmission infrastructure between ETH, utilities, and energy management systems. Additionally, the assistant will work with a time-series database designed for high-volume ingestion and low-latency queries, making it scalable and reliable. Implementing replication, backup, and disaster recovery strategies is also a key part of the job. Furthermore, the assistant will build visualization dashboards and remote experimentation APIs to provide researchers with live insights into grid behavior. To qualify for this role, candidates must be ETH students enrolled in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Power Engineering, or related fields. A passion for data engineering, systems development, and energy-related topics is essential. Fluency in English is required, with German being a plus but not mandatory. Candidates should be available for approximately 8–15 hours per week, either one or two days. Strong expertise in Git, Python, and Linux development environments is necessary. Nice-to-have skills include experience with RabbitMQ, Grafana, SQL, Docker, and front-end development. The role offers a collaborative environment with leading academics and industry partners, providing hands-on experience with real-world data infrastructure and distributed system design. The workplace features flexible working conditions, state-of-the-art facilities, and remuneration according to ETH student assistant salary guidelines. What the role asks for: - ETH student enrolled in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Power Engineering, or related fields. - Fluency in English. - Availability of approximately 8–15 hours per week (one or two days). - Strong expertise in Git, Python, and Linux development environments. - Experience with RabbitMQ, Grafana, SQL, Docker, front-end development (nice to have).