Algorithm Engineering Apprentice

Thales Group; England; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading technology company in the UK is seeking an Algorithm Engineering Apprentice to enhance skills in algorithm design for sonar systems. The role involves working with a team on digital solutions and includes qualifications for a BSc in Digital and Technology Solutions. This apprenticeship offers training and experience in an innovative environment.

Benefits

201 hours annual leave

Company Pension

Health Care

Life Insurance

Performance-related pay uplifts

Qualifications

• Eligibility to work in the UK, security clearance required.
• Strong foundational concepts in mathematics and physics apply to underwater acoustic systems.

Responsibilities

• Analyze business problems for digital and technology solutions.
• Initiate, design, code, test and debug software components.
• Manage digital projects using appropriate methodologies.
• Evaluate innovative technologies for digital solutions.

Skills

Problem-solving methods and approaches

Effective communication skills

Knowledge of digital technologies (data science, AI/ML)

Signal processing

High-level system analysis

Scientific and numerical programming (MATLAB, Python)

Education

5 GCSEs Including English and Maths (grade 9-4)

3 A Levels including Maths and relevant STEM (grade BBC)

Job description

Join us as an Algorithm Engineering Apprentice where you'll have the opportunity to enhance your skills in designing the signal processing and AI algorithms that power the world's leading sonar systems. You will collaborate with a diverse team of experts to create complex systems for our customers. This role promises an exciting journey into the world of sonar technology!

Responsibilities

• Analyse a business problem to identify the role of digital and technology solutions.
• Identify risks, determine mitigation strategies and opportunities for improvement in a digital and technology solutions project.
• Analyse a business problem in order to specify an appropriate digital and technology solution.
• Initiate, design, code, test and debug a software component for a digital and technology solution.
• Apply relevant standard processes, methods, techniques and tools. For example, ISO Standards, Waterfall, Agile in a digital and technology solution project.
• Manage digital and technology solutions projects. For example, identifying and resolving deviations from specification, applying appropriate Project Management methodologies.
• Work effectively within teams, leading on appropriate digital technology solution activities.
• Apply relevant organisational theories. For example, change management principles, marketing approaches, strategic practice, and IT service management to a digital and technology solutions project.
• Apply relevant security and resilience techniques to a digital and technology solution. For example, risk assessments, mitigation strategies.
• Initiate, design, implement and debug a data product for a digital and technology solution.
• Determine and use appropriate data analysis techniques. For example, Text, Statistical, Diagnostic or Predictive Analysis to assess a digital and technology solutions.
• Plan, design and manage simple computer networks with an overall focus on the services and capabilities that network infrastructure solutions enable in an organisational context.
• Report effectively to colleagues and stakeholders using the appropriate language and style, to meet the needs of the audience concerned.
• Research, investigate, and evaluate innovative technologies or approaches in the development of a digital and technology solution.
• Apply relevant legal, ethical, social and professional standards to a digital and technology solution.
• Identify and define software engineering problems that are non-routine and incompletely specified.
• Provide recommendations as to the appropriate software engineering solution.
• Use appropriate analysis methods, approaches and techniques in software engineering projects to deliver an outcome that meets requirements.
• Implement software engineering projects using appropriate software engineering methods, approaches and techniques.
• Respond to changing priorities and problems arising within software engineering projects by making revised recommendations, and adapting plans as necessary, to fit the scenario being investigated.
• Determine, refine, adapt and use appropriate software engineering methods, approaches and techniques to evaluate software engineering project outcomes.
• Evaluate learning points arising from software engineering work undertaken on a project including use of methods, analysis undertaken, selection of approach and the outcome achieved, in order to identify both lessons learnt and recommendations for improvements to future projects.
• Extend and update software development knowledge with evidence from professional and academic sources by undertaking appropriate research to inform best practice and lead improvements in the organisation.Analyse client needs and determine how to advise them strategically through improved business processes, new ideas, or technology solutions.
• Effectively communicate value add to the client through a variety of media. For example, presentations, written reports, Storytelling in a professional setting through performing socio-technical process improvements in a range of environments.
• Make evidence based recommendations taking into account risks, costs, and benefits.
• Participate in walk-throughs for Information Technologies, to identify, document and evaluate key risks within a client's organisation.
• Perform stakeholder analysis to identify, determine and deepen understanding of system requirements and develop client relationships.
• Effect change within an organisation through evaluation of a new system, or initiative.
• Ensure legal and ethical requirements are accommodated in the development of digital and technology solutions.
• Evaluate the success of new systems, processes, or initiatives.
• Use requirements elicitation, analysis and documentation to produce an acceptable solution for business problems or further opportunities.
• Conduct Process Analysis, Definition, Mapping and Modelling within a business situation without supervision.
• Produce Use Cases which are of value to all stakeholders of a system.
• Use tools and benchmarking to support modelling and requirements gathering and recommend approaches to team members as required.
• Produce a business case to scope a proposed project including business benefits and recommendations.
• Use products of analysis in the design and development of a system.
• Evaluate the impacts of model selection and how they inter-relate with each other when generating business analytics.
• Recommend and use appropriate software tools to implement Business Analysis tasks and outcomes.
• Discover, identify and analyse security threats, attack techniques and vulnerabilities and recommend mitigation and security controls.
• Undertake security risk assessments for complex systems without direct supervision and propose a remediation strategy relevant to the context of the organisation.
• Recommend improvements to the cyber security approaches of an organisation based on research into future potential cyber threat trends.
• Manage cyber security risk.
• Use appropriate cyber security technology, tools and techniques in relation to the risks identified.
• Lead cyber security awareness campaigns and evaluate their effectiveness.
• Analyse cyber security requirements against other design requirements for systems or products, identify conflicting requirements and recommend appropriate solutions with clear explanation of costs and benefits.
• Lead the design and build of systems in accordance with a security case to address organisational challenges.
• Define Data Requirements and perform Data Collection, Data Processing and Data Cleansing.
• Apply different types of Data Analysis, as appropriate, to drive improvements for specific business problems.
• Find, present, communicate and disseminate data analysis outputs effectively and with high impact through creative storytelling, tailoring the message for the audience. Visualise data to tell compelling and actionable narratives by using the best medium for each audience, such as charts, graphs and dashboards.
• Identify barriers to effective analysis encountered both by analysts and their stakeholders within data analysis projects.
• Apply a range of techniques for analysing quantitative data such as data mining, time series forecasting, algorithms, statistics and modelling techniques to identify and predict trends and patterns in data.
• Apply exploratory or confirmatory approaches to analysing data. Validate and and test stability of the results.
• Extract data from a range of sources. For example, databases, web services, open data.
• Analyse in detail large data sets, using a range of industry standard tools and data analysis methods.
• Identify and collate stakeholder needs in relation to computer network requirements, plans and designs.
• Plan, design, document, and develop the relevant elements of a computer network within an organisation or between organisations, taking into account customer requirements (performance, scale), constraints (budget, equipment availability), and define policies for their use.
• Monitor performance and ensure networks are configured correctly and perform as expected by designers or architects. Undertake capacity management and audit of IP addressing and hosted devices.
• Investigate, troubleshoot and resolve data network faults in local and wide area environments, using information from multiple sources, physically or remotely by console connection. Recommend and implement short term fixes to restore service and, or, quality of experience and recommend longer term changes to prevent recurrence or reduce impact of future occurrences.
• Implement computer networks from a design including testing and validation. This includes populating variables in configurations, for example, IP addresses and subsequent application of configuration to equipment such as routers, switches, firewalls.
• Secure network systems by establishing and enforcing policies, and defining and monitoring access. Support and administer firewall environments in line with IT security policy.
• Research and evaluate emerging network technologies and assess relevance to current network requirements. Provide an objective opinion on how new features and technologies may be incorporated as required by the organisation.
• Investigate security concerns or attacks. For example, Distributed Denial of Service (DDOS), port scanning, assessing key metrics and indicators, evidencing the chosen steps to mitigate.

Apprenticeship Outcomes & Qualifications

• At the end of the apprenticeship, you will be working as a software engineer within one of the Thales UK businesses. Your final qualification will be a BSc in Digital and Technology Solutions, plus the Level 6-degree apprenticeship qualification.
• Eligibility to work in the UK, time spent abroad over the last 5 years, as well as employment and/or educational history. For further details of the evidence required to apply for security clearance, please follow this link - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels

Key Skills

• Problem‑solving methods and approaches
• Effective communication skills in both writing reports and giving presentations
• Knowledge and application of the key digital technologies such as data science or AI/ML
• Signal processing (such as audio, image, video processing) and information processing (raw data or structured data)
• Effective algorithm design and implementations, and importance of verification and validation
• An understanding of foundational concepts in mathematics and physics that apply to underwater acoustic systems
• Conduct high level of system analysis with supporting application of science and mathematics
• Scientific and numerical programming and scripting languages (e.g. MATLAB, Python), GCSE in:
• 5 GCSE's Including English and Maths (grade 9-4 (A-C)) A Level in: 3 A Level's including Maths and relevant STEM (grade BBC) Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.

Benefits

• 201 hours annual leave (plus a company day and bank holidays)
• Company Pension
• Health Care
• Cash Plan
• Life Insurance
• Discount portal
• Performance‑related pay uplifts
• 80 hours volunteering (first two years)

Are you passionate about engineering? Do you have an inquisitive mind? Are you looking for an employer who will sponsor you through a degree whilst providing valuable and exciting on‑the‑job experience within a global, innovative and industry‑leading organisation? If so, read on to see what Thales has on offer.

Together, we create the ingenious technological systems and innovations that impact and improve people's lives every single day. Even if you haven't heard the name Thales before, you've definitely benefited from our inventiveness. We reinvest 20% of our sales in Research & Development in the UK. We support businesses, organisations, and governments in addressing tomorrow's major challenges by developing advanced Defence, Security, Cybersecurity, Digital Identity, and Aerospace solutions, in the most sustainable, responsible, and ethical manner.