A List of Potential Space Jobs, and Not Just for Astronauts

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This is a different type of space career book, and it’s something I strongly recommend to anyone looking for a career in the space field.
The book is straight forward in a sense that it list almost every possible career opportunity in space, narrowing it down to single, particular jobs, depending what the job-seeker may want.
A career could be in space, or on Earth working in a space related job, and this book covers all aspects in both the technical and non-technical fields. So even if you are not in the field of science and engineering, you still need to read this book, because the space movement needs people from all disciplines in order for this movement to flourish.

The first 50 pages briefly describes what the present space movement is doing, along with the history of space exploration, and what jobs will be needed, in all academic disciplines.
Then, the book expands in to the disciplines themselves.

First, you should read the entire book. This is your guide to finding a particular job, the job you might feel is right for you.
Second, study the Table of Contents. This contain a category of jobs under each chapter given. From there, in each chapter are the individual jobs listed with a description. The Table of Contents here is more important than in other book you read, so use that as a reference.
The first two chapters are a must for everyone to read and study.
From Chapter 3 onward, up to the end of the book being Chapter 19, are many different opportunities, from becoming an astronaut to legal careers, from research and development (R & D) to Robotics, and up to and including space art and commercial space ventures including private launch companies such as SpaceX and Blue Origin.
Many of these disciplines do involve train in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Many require up to a Ph.D. in these fields. There is no getting around that.
There are disciplines such as Space Law that is needed, and I personally know a space lawyer and was taught firsthand why space law is so vital to the space movement, and yes, it already exists.
The author, Sumana Mukherjee, also mentions artists and architects needed to design space habitats, factories, vehicles, and other space facilities.
Space psychologist are needed to study human behavior and how they can function in space for extremely long periods of time.
Space educators, teachers, are self-explanatory.
There would also be business people in dealing with commercial space, along with marketing, public relations, human resources, journalism, and history and archeology.
The list is almost infinite.

The categories in this book divide, sub-divide, and sub-divide again, given each sub-division it’s own individual page. This tells you the single, exact job that needs to be done, and here is where the job seeker would examine and think about the page, or any page, until he or she decides, “this is what I want to do.”
Once one decides what career/job they want, instructions are provided on how to use your background to pursue the desired career.
From that point, the potential space careerist can fill out on their job application what they are applying for and what they want to do, with all the qualification he or she may have. The person doing the hiring will have more confidence in that job seeker, increasing the chances for a job interview and possibly even being hired.
Here is an example of what I have just explained.

Chapter 11 covers Space Communications and Earth Observation (I won’t cover the entire chapter but enough to explain the setup of the book)
One section is Careers in Satellite Communications and Networks.
A sub-section is Satellite Communications Engineer - this is a particular job, explaining what it is and the key responsibilities.
The second below that is Satellite Network Architect, another job. The Key responsibilities are explained here, also.
Other jobs are listed the same way and this covers entire pages and sections.
There is then a section on “How to Become a Space Communications and IT Professional,” listing the education required, gain internships and networking, certifications and specializations, and how to stay updated.
The chapter goes into other categories, with, for example, “Climate Science and Planetary Environment Studies” and explains in detail what jobs are offered.
What is listed, of course is what is required, as in education and experience, and advice on how to go about in applying for these jobs after you’ve had the proper training.

Communications is only one example. There are many other fields that may be of interested to you, and everything is explained the same way, so whatever your interest, a particular job would be in that field, saying “this is what I want to spend my life doing for the space movement, be it art, psychology, law, satellites, astronomy, business, engineering, or whatever your field of interest.

You can work with space agencies in your prospective government, or with the private sector, and private industries are more and more taking up an interest in space.

Remember, read the entire book, then go over it again and focus on the sections, chapters that are of your interests, and then you’ll be able to pinpoint the job you want.

I not only recommend this book, but other books on space careers as well, for many of them are being published. Buy them as well. You’ll be a lot more informed. Take this from a former job seeker - I know!

Anyway, buy and read this book. It’s well worth your time and money.