NASA Reopens Astronaut Search After 10 Chosen From 8,000+ Applicants

By Grace Kim

Only 10 of more than 8,000 applicants made the cut for NASA’s last astronaut class, a sharply selective U.S. hiring process that has not accepted new candidates since 2024.

That application count describes one narrow occupational market, not wider U.S. hiring trends. For an individual candidate, NASA’s previous selection rate is the relevant benchmark.

NASA announced Saturday that applications for its next class were open, the agency’s first intake since 2024. It tied the hiring to returning to the Moon, including the lunar South Pole, and preparing for possible Mars missions. NASA also described this period as a Golden Age of innovation and exploration.

What does NASA want from applicants?

Administrator Jared Isaacman said: “The people we select could walk on the Moon, live and work at the Moon Base, and help pioneer the systems and operations that will ultimately carry crews to Mars.”

NASA sets three baseline qualifications:

• U.S. citizenship.
• A completed master’s degree in a STEM field, or an equivalent background such as a medical degree, doctoral work or test-pilot training.
• Three full years of relevant work experience.

Anna Schneider, NASA’s public affairs specialist, put the bar this way: “NASA seeks astronaut candidates who represent the best of American ingenuity, skill, and determination. They must demonstrate strong technical expertise, operational judgment, leadership, teamwork, communication skills, and the ability to perform demanding missions safely and effectively.”

For an individual candidate, this combination widens eligible backgrounds beyond traditional engineering careers while setting a high bar for how applicants perform. The takeaway: NASA wants technical depth and operational judgment, not academic credentials alone.

What does the selection process involve?

The last search produced 10 hires from more than 8,000 applications: fewer than one hire for every 800 applicants. Before reaching that 10-person cohort, candidates must pass:

• Drug tests.
• A background security investigation.
• Vision testing.
• Other medical and psychiatric examinations.
• A water-survival test.

They also must be willing to spend long stretches in hazardous and confined spaces.

The original article framed the opportunity with a tongue-in-cheek 140-million-mile work-commute joke. NASA’s formal terms are more concrete, combining physical risk, demanding missions and schedule unpredictability. The takeaway: the selection filters for qualifications and operational readiness, so completing an application is only the first gate.

What do selected astronauts receive?

NASA says successful applicants receive two years of training and an annual salary of $164,395. They also work irregular hours and cannot work remotely.

That puts compensation firmly in six-figure territory. The role also offers work that NASA says could include living at a lunar base and helping develop the systems that carry crews to Mars. The trade-offs are concrete: intensive preparation, hazardous environments, irregular schedules and no remote option.

The takeaway: the package offers substantial pay and a defined mission in return for demanding training and operational constraints.

NASA expects to announce the new class in late 2027; until then, the 10 selections from more than 8,000 applicants remain the clearest benchmark for anyone deciding whether the application fits their career.