Ulla Engelmann has obtained a phD in radiochemistry at the technical university of Karlsruhe (today KIT, Karlsruhe Institute for Technology) in 1992.
She then started as a postdoc in JRC Ispra in the Tritium laboratory, and moved to heading the PR department in JRC Ispra in 1997. From 2004 she worked in different Head of Unit functions in JRC, including communication, international and interinstitutional relations. She moved to DG GROW (Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship & SMEs) in 2017, where she held different functions with responsibility for SME networks, such as industrial clusters and Entreprise Europe Network, entrepreneurship, social economy and industrial forum and she was one year acting Director for networks and governance. Since 2023 she is JRC Karlsruhe Site Director (employer) and JRC Director G for Nuclear Safety and Security with units based in Karlsruhe (D), Geel (B), Petten (NL) and Ispra (I).
The mission of the JRC (DG Joint Research Centre) Directorate G for Nuclear Safety and Security is the implementation of the JRC Euratom Research and Training Programme, the JRC Nuclear Strategy and the maintenance and dissemination of nuclear competences in Europe to serve both ”nuclear” and ”non-nuclear” EU Member States. She manages an annual budget (excl. staff cost) of around 40 M€ and 320 staff distributed over 4 sites.