Student Assistant - Sustainable Electronic Device Development

Want to help Demant cut emissions by 46% by 2030? As our Student Assistant specializing in more sustainable electronics solutions, you’ll tackle the biggest environmental hotspots in our medical devices: PCBs, ICs, and power usage.
You will do this by helping us rethink design, materials, component choices and our supply chain. 

Your Mission: Hack the Hotspots using our LCA insights

As part of Demant’s green transition, we are committed to the Science Based Targets initiative 
(SBTi), aiming to reduce our environmental emissions by 46% before 2030.
Our approach is to reach those targets through a committed effort to reduce the environmental impact of the products we design and put on the market. 
In 2026, we developed and published our first product Life Cycle Assessments.
These LCAs identified PCBs, ICs and power usage throughout the products lifetime as key environmental hotspots – and we now start the process of reducing the environmental impacts of those hotspots. 
No prior sustainability experience is required, just a passion for learning and making a difference.

Authorities

• PCBs: Optimize layouts to reduce energy use and minimize material use without sacrificing performance. Design for longevity and find solutions that are serviceable, durable, and upgradeable.
• ICs: Compare power, process nodes, longevity of ICs and scan the technological market to pick the more sustainable options. 
• Power management: Find verifiable ways to reduce product electricity consumption during its lifetime i.e. by understanding and impacting user behaviors, incorporating better standby functions or replacing/reducing certain electronic components.
• Collaboration: Translate LCA insights into real design changes. 
  • Team up with R&D, procurement, and quality to green-light better components.
• Write your final dissertation with us as your case: We expect the ideal candidate to commit to writing their final dissertation (whether Bachelor’s or Master’s degree) with Demant Diagnostics as the case, to document findings in a written report. 

You will face questions such as:

• If the current LCA shows PCB copper dominates the emissions, how would you redesign the PCB to reduce copper thickness? (if possible)
• If IC manufacturing dominates, can we use chips with smaller die sizes, smaller process node sizes, larger transistor density to lower emissions? Consider how we remain functionality
• If the longevity of the PCBs is too low, how would you redesign to improve repairability or modularize boards?
• If we are lacking data for certain electronic parts, how do we make data requests easy to understand for distributors or suppliers to prepare? How do we manage the external stakeholders to ensure best collaboration?

Desired Qualifications

Your Hard Skills

• Knowledge of PCB layout tools (e.g., Altium, KiCad) and design principles.
• Semiconductor savvy: MCUs, SoCs, PMICs, sensors, radio chips, and CMOS nodes.
• Material knowledge: FR-4 vs. bio-based laminates, copper thickness, etc.
• LCA literacy: ability to interpret and apply findings (no need to run LCAs yourself).

Your Soft Skills

• Structured yet creative: You understand that there should be a balance between performance, cost, and planet – but naturally like to think outside the box
• Collaborative: You thrive in cross-functional teams and see the value in approaching a topic from different backgrounds and perspectives. 
• Curious: You have an interest in emerging tech, sustainable materials, and the next big thing in greener electronics.
• Pragmatic: You have attention to detail and a natural drive to get things done right, but couple this with an understanding that sometimes, perfectionism can be a showstopper for progress and that we occasionally need to work with the approach that the work we do is “better done than perfect”.

What’s in it for you

• Be a frontrunner: In our industry, working with this area is uncharted territory—you’ll gain rare expertise at the intersection of electronics and sustainability.
• Real impact: Your work directly supports Demant’s SBTi commitment (46% emissions reductions by 2030).
• Grow with us: Learn from our first-ever product LCAs and help turn data into action.

Job details

• Location: We prefer that you work physically out of Middelfart, but offer flexibility for remote work out of our other locations for the right candidate. This could be in Demant’s head office in Smørum.
• Working hours: This position will be based on 8-10 hrs/week.
• Wage: Depends on the educational background of the applicant.
• Team Culture: You will join a team consisting of a Sustainability Manager and a Sustainability/Compliance Analyst.
  We’re a young, energetic team where innovative thinking and pragmatic action go hand in hand. We’re driven by results, but we also believe in work-life balance, great conversations, and the occasional stroll to clear our heads and take a break from the corporate lingo. With us, you’ll find a collaborative, informal environment where your contributions matter and where having a sustainable approach to what we do is key – both mentally and professionally.
• Diversity: We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and encourage you to not add a photo to your application to ensure a completely unbiased selection process, where it is your attitude and competences that matter.

Apply today