Junior Data Engineer

Dalhousie University; Halifax; Hybrid; CAD 63,000 - 79,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health and dental plans

Defined benefit pension plan

Health spending account

Employee and family assistance program

Tuition assistance program

Job summary

Dalhousie University is hiring a Junior Data Engineer to support the development, maintenance, and quality of enterprise data pipelines and datasets within the Office of Planning & Institutional Effectiveness. You will work under senior engineers to design, build, test, and secure ingestion processes feeding the enterprise data warehouse and analytics.

Responsibilities include testing ETL/ELT data pipelines, documenting sources and transformations, and collaborating with BI analysts and data

Qualifications

• Undergraduate degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• Foundational understanding of data structures, algorithms, and relational databases.
• Proficiency with Python and SQL.
• Familiarity with ETL / ELT concepts and modern data engineering tools (e.g., Microsoft Fabric, Fabric Data Factory, Spark, Spark, DBT).
• Strong attention to detail and ability to document steps clearly for cross-team use.
• Strong organizational skills and teamwork and communication abilities.

Responsibilities

• Assist with testing ETL/ELT data pipelines to ingest data from APIs, cloud apps, databases, and flat files into data warehouses and lakehouses.
• Document data sources, transformations, and pipeline logic; maintain metadata and governance artifacts.
• Collaborate with data architects and BI analysts to troubleshoot ingestion issues and support downstream analytics.
• Support development and testing of data solutions using Fabric Data Factory, Data Pipelines, Lakehouses, Warehouses, notebooks and Spark.
• Develop and maintain SQL, Python, and Spark skills to support data transformation and automation.
• Continue to build skills in Microsoft Fabric and related data engineering capabilities.

Skills

Python

SQL

ETL/ELT concepts

Microsoft Fabric

Fabric Data Factory

Spark

DBT

Data structures

Relational databases

Education

Undergraduate degree in Computer Science, Data Science, or Engineering

Tools

Power BI

Git

CI/CD

Containerization

OneLake

Lakehouses

Warehouses

Job description

Salary $34.37 - $43.52 per hour ($62,558- $79,216 per annum, 35 hours per week)

Classification

Classification SIT1

Provisional Statement

This is a provisional classification. Formal regular review classification procedures may be initiated at any time by the incumbent or supervisor after the incumbent has worked a minimum of six months in the role.

Dalhousie University is Atlantic Canada’s leading research-intensive university and a driver of the region’s intellectual, social and economic development. Located in the heart of Halifax, Nova Scotia, with an Agricultural Campus in Truro/Bible Hill, Dalhousie is a truly national and international university, with more than half of our almost 21,000 students coming from outside of the province. Our 6,000 faculty and staff foster a vibrant, purpose-driven community, that celebrated 200 years of academic excellence in 2018.

Job Summary

The Office of Planning and Institutional Effectiveness ( OPIE ) is accountable for ensuring smooth, efficient institutional operations and supporting the strategic priorities of Dalhousie by providing shared services in the space of strategy development, project and planning support, data warehousing, governance and advanced analytics. Reporting to the Senior Director, Data Transformation and Governance, the Junior Data Engineer supports the development, maintenance, and quality of Dalhousie’s enterprise data pipelines and datasets within the Office of Planning & Institutional Effectiveness. Working under the guidance of senior data engineers and architects, the incumbent helps design, build, test, and secure data ingestion processes that supply the Enterprise Data Warehouse ( EDW ), operational reporting, and institutional analytics.

Key Responsibilities

• Assist with testing Extract, Transform, Load ( ETL )/Extract, Load, and Transform ( ELT ) data pipelines to ingest data from Application Programming Interface (APIs), cloud applications, databases, and flat files into OneLake, Fabric Lakehouses and Warehouses and the Enterprise Data Warehouse. Support data quality, validation, and unit testing by applying profiling checks, identifying anomalies, and verifying transformations, schemas, and record counts.
• Document data sources, transformations, and pipeline logic, and maintain metadata, lineage, and definitions in governance tools in accordance with institutional standards. Apply security, access controls, and sensitivity classifications appropriately, supporting secure handling of credentials and participating in audit or access reviews as required.
• Collaborate with data architects, Business Intelligence (BI) Analysts, and data engineers to troubleshoot ingestion issues, support downstream analytics, and follow DevOps and version control best practices.
• Support the development and testing of data solutions using Fabric Data Factory, Data Pipelines, Lakehouses, Warehouses, notebooks, Spark and other Fabric capabilities, following established enterprise architecture and engineering standards.
• Develop and maintain foundational Structured Query Language ( SQL ), Python and Spark skills to support data transformation, validation, automation and data engineering activities within Microsoft Fabric.
• Continuously build technical skills by exploring emerging data architecture patterns within Microsoft Fabric, including OneLake, medallion architecture and related tools.

Note

The successful applicant will be eligible for hybrid work (combination of in-person work on campus and remote work from within Nova Scotia) as agreed by all parties based on operational requirements and university guidelines.

Required Qualifications

• Undergraduate degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Engineering, or a related field, with two years’ related experience (or an equivalent combination of training and experience).
• Foundational understanding of data structures, algorithms, and relational databases.
• Proficiency with Python and SQL .
• Familiarity with ETL / ELT concepts and modern data engineering tools (e.g., Microsoft Fabric, Fabric Data Factory, Spark , Spark, DBT ).
• Strong attention to detail and ability to follow structured data architecture processes with the ability to document technical steps clearly for cross team use.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to accuracy with effective teamwork and communication skills.

Assets

• Experience with Power BI or visualization tools.
• Exposure to Microsoft Fabric, including Fabric Data Factory, OneLake, Lakehouses, Warehouses, or related data engineering capabilities.
• Experience with Git or other version control systems.
• Familiarity with Continuous Integration (CI)/Continuous Delivery (CD) pipelines, testing frameworks, or containerization is an asset.
• Awareness of data governance frameworks such as definitions, lineage, quality rules, and stewardship.

The successful candidate is expected to demonstrate proficiency in Dalhousie’s core competencies (https://www.dal.ca/dept/leaders.html), in particular:

• Respect & Inclusion
• Adaptability
• Knowledge & Thinking Skills
• Communication
• Service

Additional Information

Dalhousie University supports a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Our total compensation package includes a defined benefit pension plan, health and dental plans, a health spending account, an employee and family assistance program and a tuition assistance program.

Application Consideration

Non-probationary bargaining unit employees ( NSGEU local 77) are given priority consideration. All other applications will be considered when there is no qualified candidate from the bargaining unit. We sincerely appreciate all applications and note that only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted directly by the hiring department or People and Culture.

Diversity Statement

Dalhousie University commits to achieving inclusive excellence through continually championing equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility. The university encourages applications from Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island (especially Mi’kmaq), persons of Black/African descent (especially African Nova Scotians), and members of other racialized groups, persons with disabilities, women, persons identifying as members of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities, and all candidates who would contribute to the diversity of our community. In accordance with our Employment Equity Policy, preference will be given in hiring processes to candidates who self-identify as members of one or more of the equity-deserving groups listed above. For more information, including details related to our Employment Equity Policy and Plan and definitions of equity-deserving groups please review our Employment Equity information. If you require any support for the purpose of accommodation, such as technical aids or alternative arrangements, please let us know of these needs and how we can be of assistance. Dalhousie University is committed to ensuring all candidates have full, fair, and equitable participation in the hiring process. Our complete Accommodation Policy can be viewed here .

Required fields are indicated with an asterisk (*).

Documents Needed to Apply

Required Documents

• Résumé / Curriculum Vitae (CV)

Optional Documents

• Cover Letter