Materials & Process Engineer
Stoke Space is a pioneering aerospace company dedicated to developing Nova, a fully and rapidly reusable launch vehicle designed to revolutionize space transportation. The Materials & Process Engineer will play a pivotal role in ensuring the reliability, performance, and producibility of Nova by leading strategy, testing, characterization, and qualification efforts centered around Stoke's material systems. This position offers an opportunity to collaborate with design, analysis, and manufacturing teams throughout all phases of the product lifecycle.
In this role, the engineer will serve as the responsible M&P engineer for Stoke's engines, structures, mechanisms, coatings, and adhesives. Key responsibilities include evaluating and selecting appropriate materials for various hardware systems, designing and executing material characterization programs such as mechanical testing, environmental exposure, fatigue, and failure analysis, and authoring and maintaining M&P requirements, material specifications, testing protocols, and engineering work standards related to Stoke material systems. Additionally, the engineer will lead failure analysis and root cause investigations for material-related anomalies, establish corrective action processes that feed back into design iteration, evaluate, qualify, and manage material suppliers, and define the strategy and qualification philosophy for materials at Stoke. Collaboration with engines, structures, analysis, avionics, valves, welding, additive, and manufacturing teams to create a robust system-level material property database is also essential. The engineer will own and build out Stoke's materials characterization lab, testing protocols, and development workflows.
Candidates should possess a Bachelor's degree in materials science, chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, physics, aerospace engineering, or a related technical discipline, along with at least 3 years of professional experience in materials engineering. Demonstrated expertise in material selection, characterization, qualification, testing, and failure analysis is required, as well as a background working across multiple material systems and processes, including metals, soft goods, coatings, powder metallurgy, welding, and heat treatment. Proficiency with material characterization techniques and tools such as metallography, microscopy, and mechanical testing is essential. A proven track record of material and process decisions validated through flight or equivalent high-reliability hardware programs is highly desirable.
Preferred qualifications include a Master's degree or PhD in materials science, chemical engineering, or a related field, experience architecting M&P programs for rocket systems across the full development lifecycle, familiarity with ASTM, NASA, and AWS industry standards, and expertise in key M&P disciplines including fracture mechanics, corrosion control, statistics, and failure analysis.
Stoke Space offers a comprehensive benefits program, including equity in the form of stock options, subsidized medical, dental, and vision insurance, company-paid life and disability insurance, a 401(k) plan with employer match, 4 weeks of paid time off, 10 holidays (including an end-of-year closure), paid family/parental leave, on-site gym or monthly wellness stipend (depending on location), and dog-friendly offices.
Joining Stoke Space means becoming part of a mission-driven, collaborative team empowered to take ownership of their work. If you're eager to work alongside some of the most dedicated and talented people in the aerospace industry, this is an opportunity to contribute to a truly scalable space economy.