Project background

The future smart grid features the widespread integration of distributed energy resources, introducing new challenges to infrastructure in areas such as automatic control, data management, and communication. The Internet of Things, big data technologies, and operational technology must be reliably and securely integrated to ensure smart grid operations.

We are seeking a reliable and highly motivated student assistant to support our research. In this role, you will design and develop data infrastructure to tackle real-world challenges in smart grid research, ensuring our infrastructure meets requirements in the future such as scalability under load, resilience to failure, and adaptability to change.

The starting date is flexible but an early start is preferred.

Job description

Infrastructure Development: Work in containerd environments, ensure the security, availability, scalability and accountability of our server.
Communication Pipeline: Enhance and extend data and command transmission infrastructure between ETH, utilities, and energy management systems ensuring they re reliable (think backpressure handling and exactly-once semantics) and maintainable.
Databases: Work with time-series database designed for high-volume ingestion and low-latency queries, and make sure they are scalable and reliable under extreme scenarios.
Reliability & Recovery: Implement replication, backup, and disaster recovery strategies making sure the system survives faults without losing data.
Front-end Development: Build visualization dashboards (Grafana) and remote experimentation APIs to give researchers live insight into grid behavior and improve user experiences on our platform.

Profile

You are an ETH student enrolled in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Power Engineering, or related fields.
You are passionate about data engineering, systems development, and energy-related topics.
You are fluent in English. German is a plus but not mandatory.
You are available to work approximately 8 - 15 hours per week (i.e. one or two days per week).
You have strong expertise in Git, Python, and Linux development environments.
Ideally, you have worked with one or some of the following fields: RabbitMQ, Grafana, SQL, Docker, and front-end development.
You pay strong attention to details, and you work responsibly.

We offer

Hands-on experience with real-world data infrastructure, and distributed system design.
Working alongside leading academics, industry partners, and a collaborative research community. Rare chance to see theory play out on a real part of our critical infrastructure.
Flexible working conditions, state-of-the-art facilities, and remuneration according to ETH student assistant salary guidelines.

Diversity and sustainability

In line with our values , ETH Zurich encourages an inclusive culture. We promote equality of opportunity, value diversity and nurture a working and learning environment in which the rights and dignity of all our staff and students are respected. Visit our Equal Opportunities and Diversity website to find out how we ensure a fair and open environment that allows everyone to grow and flourish. Sustainability is a core value for us we are consistently working towards a climate-neutral future .

Application Process

We look forward to receiving your online application until 15 Nov 2026, with the following documents:

Transcripts
CV
A short cover letter explaining your motivation for the project and how your previous experience makes you a good fit for the position.
Link to your relevant projects / code samples (optional)

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, so we encourage you to apply early.

Further information about the research group can be found on our Website . Questions regarding the position should be directed to Hanshuo Wu (wu@eeh.ee.ethz.ch) (no applications).

Please note that we exclusively accept applications submitted through our online application portal. Applications via email or postal services will not be considered.

About ETH Z rich

ETH Zurich is one of the world s leading universities specialising in science and technology. We are renowned for our excellent education, cutting-edge fundamental research and direct transfer of new knowledge into society. Over 30,000 people from more than 120 countries find our university to be a place that promotes independent thinking and an environment that inspires excellence. Located in the heart of Europe, yet forging connections all over the world, we work together to develop solutions for the global challenges of today and tomorrow.