The ISAE is a public institution under tutelary authority of the French Ministry of Defence and can only recruit agents under public law obeying the rules applicable in the French civil service (Fonction publique).

There are three categories of jobs within the ISAE:

Permanent employment:

• Post occupied by State functionaries and military personnel from the Armed Forces. The ISAE recruits its civil personnel (functionaries) by transfer, secondment or availability from the Civil Service or from among the winners of national or regional administrative entrance exams organised by the Ministry of Defence.

• Jobs occupied by agents under public law contract (under certain conditions). The ISAE can recruit agents under public law contract (non functionary personnel) by derogation to the general principle by virtue of the provisions of articles 4 and 6 of law No. 84-16 of 11 January 1984 modified.
• Jobs occupied by State employed workers.The ISAE can recruit State employed workers only by transfer.

Non-permanent employment:

• Jobs occupied by seasonal contract or occasional employees. The ISAE has the possibility of recruiting on the basis of contracts limited to 6 months for seasonal workers and 10 months for occasional workers.
• Jobs occupied by contract employees under an agreement. This concerns people recruited on an occasional basis to conduct a study ordered by an industrialist for example. The contract duration is set according to that of the agreement but always within the limits imposed by French law No. 84-16 of 11 January 1984 modified (3 years maximum).
• Jobs occupied by PhD. PhD can be recruited by virtue of the law No. 84-16 of 11 January 1984 modified for a duration of 3 years corresponding generally to the duration of the thesis. These contracts can neither be renewed nor prolonged.
• Jobs occupied by High Level Volunteers (V.H.N.). V.H.N.s are military personnel. Recruitment is conducted by the ISAE on the basis of qualifications. VHNs are holders of an employment contract lasting one year renewable within the limit of 5 years. Recruitment campaigns take place every year. Candidates must satisfy three conditions: be less than 26 years of age, be medically employable and of French nationality. On initial recruitment, V.H.N.s follow one month’s military training in a training centre in the Paris region.
  For further information, see the Internet site of the Délégation Générale pour l’Armement

Teaching specified period employees:

• Functions occupied by qualified personnel who have a main job outside the ISAE who intervene on a casual basis and who by virtue of this receive an allowance.
  Teaching specified period employees do not have an employment contract and are not salaried by the institution. They intervene on a casual basis after registration on a decision for appointment over 1-year. There is a ceiling of a few tens of hours a year on such specified period posts.