German astrophysicist here . The system is unfortunately very unforgiving . This is wrong , in my opinion , but this is a fact . Whilst there might be some part time positions available , their number is very small . There are essentially no part time permanent positions available in astrophysics research , and all of them would require you to get a PhD in the field first . While PhD positions are often paid as 50 % positions , the expectation is that you are working full time on your PhD , so do NOT think that they are part time . There are some positions available in the area of outreach activities planetariums , Haus der Astronomie , but the likelihood that one opens up in the next time is also not high and you would need a PhD and significant outreach experience in order to have a chance .