Systems Engineer, Science Education Alliance (SEA)

Primary Work Address: 4000 Jones Bridge Road, Chevy Chase, MD, 20815

Current HHMI Employees, click here to apply via your Workday account.

HHMI is focused on supporting and moving science forward in a variety of different ways ranging from conducting basic biomedical research, empowering educators, inspiring students, developing the next generation of scientists - even stretching into film and media production. Our Headquarters is in the greater Washington, DC metro area and is home to over 300 employees with expertise in investments, communications, digital production, biomedical sciences, and everything in between. The work housed here supports and augments the groundbreaking research conducted in HHMI labs across the nation. As HHMI scientists continue to push boundaries in laboratories and classrooms, you can be sure that your contributions while working here are making a difference.

Summary
HHMI is focused on supporting and moving science forward in a variety of different ways ranging from conducting basic biomedical research, empowering educators, inspiring students, developing the next generation of scientists - even stretching into film and media production. Our Headquarters is in the greater Washington, DC metro area and is home to over 300 employees with expertise in investments, communications, digital production, biomedical sciences, and everything in between. The work housed here supports and augments the groundbreaking research conducted in HHMI labs across the nation. As HHMI scientists continue to push boundaries in laboratories and classrooms, you can be sure that your contributions while working here are making a difference.

HHMI's Science Education department works to engage, educate, and inspire people everywhere with opportunities for faculty at colleges and universities to participate in national collaborative research projects managed through the Science Education Alliance (SEA) program, comprehensive educational tools and resources developed and managed through the BioInteractive program, and student-centered initiatives managed through the Success in Science program.

The Systems Engineer, SEA will be a member of the Science Education Alliance (SEA) Research Team. This position requires a passion for coding, with a strong proficiency in Python, Rust, PostgreSQL, Linux systems, and containerization technologies.

As the Systems Engineer, SEA, you will manage and develop large-scale genomic and proteomics databases, maintain and develop bioinformatics software and pipelines for comparative data analyses, develop utilities to support high-throughput data processing, and oversee data storage systems and computational infrastructure.

This role works a predominantly remote schedule with occasional travel to the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) and HHMI's Headquarters in Chevy Chase, MD.

This position will remain open until Friday, September 26th at 5:00pm after which applications will no longer be accepted.

What we offer:

• Collaborative, Supportive Environment: Work closely with a passionate, highly collaborative team dedicated to advancing HHMI's mission and strategic goals in the realm of science education.
• Professional Growth Opportunity: Apply your coding, computational, and data analytics expertise while expanding your skills in a dynamic, innovation-focused environment.
• Competitive Total Rewards Package: Comprehensive healthcare, generous retirement contributions, paid leave, and additional programs that support well-being and professional development.

• Write excellent code and make implementation decisions based on:
  
  
  • (a) advanced understanding of the software development lifecycle, spanning customer requirements, planning, design, prototyping, agile feedback, implementation, maintenance, testing, and requirements staging,
  • (b) technology selection,
  • (c) implementation style (degree of object orientation, degree of performance optimization, framework leverage),
  • (d) likelihood of reusability or service containerization, and
  • (e) documentation requirements
• Approach project with a holistic awareness of software design patterns and systems architecture appropriate for the task, which will influence code-writing style and technology choices.
• Collaborate with SEA faculty, staff, and researchers to translate scientific requirements into technical solutions, ensuring infrastructure aligns with program goals and evolving research needs.
• Will be capable of translating technical requirements into agile strategy that emphasizes user engagement and encompasses software design, development, implementation, and testing.
• Maintain, enhance, and scale a relational database that hosts thousands of biological datasets. Design and integrate new databases and software tools to support program growth and research needs. Enhance API and backend features to improve data access and system performance.
• Develop, maintain, automate (using Python scripts), and optimize data processing pipelines to ensure functionality and efficient ingestion, transformation, and delivery of datasets, including database management and file conversions.
• Package and deploy major bioinformatics tools using containerization technologies such as Docker or Singularity to ensure reproducibility across different computing environments.
• Write and maintain clear, user-friendly technical documentation, especially for internal tools, APIs, and workflows.
• Oversee server storage for datasets, optimize use of local and cloud computing resources, and plan for future scaling needs as database grows. Implement robust data backup, archiving, and disaster recovery strategies in compliance with institutional standards.
• Effectively communicate with both scientists and team members, including ad-hoc conversations, meetings, presentations, emails, and group collaboration tools as needed.
• Identify technology solutions, and establish coding style and workflow prioritization, taking into account team needs.

• Bachelor's degree in an engineering or scientific discipline, or equivalent combination of education and work experience, is required.
• Minimum of six (6) years of experience in software development with experience in technical project leadership is required.
• Expertise in Python, Rust, and Java is required. Additional expertise in C++ is preferred.
• Experience with Linux/Unix is required.
• Experience with PostgreSQL database management system is required.
• Experience with either Docker or Singularity is required.
• Git version control skills are required.
• Demonstrated expertise with software development tools and code repositories is required.
• Expertise in software systems and architecture is required.
• Experience with scientific programming, algorithms, databases, and/or 3D visualization is preferred.
• A familiarity with bioinformatics is preferred. Experience working with sequence data (FASTA, GenBank) and bioinformatic software would be a plus.
• Experience working in a research environment would be a plus.
• Ability to work as a technical leader.
• Ability to assume personal responsibility for major projects.
• Excellent communication skills and teamwork skills.
• A strong desire to continuously learn, improve, and strengthen your software skillset to increase your impact and project versatility.