Associate Software Engineer: DevSecOps for Space Ops

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory; Laurel (MD); On-site; USD 85,000 - 195,000; Full time

Job summary

Johns Hopkins APL invites applications for an Associate Software Engineer to design, develop, and maintain critical software that supports National Security Space operations in a TS/SCI environment. You will work on scalable, secure, and observable systems for space‑domain applications such as command‑and‑control, data processing, mission planning, and multi‑domain integration tools.

The role emphasizes DevSecOps practices, cloud‑native architectures, and secure development/deployment in

Qualifications

• Hold a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, a related field, or equivalent practical experience (internships, open‑source contributions, capstone projects).
• Have 2+ years of full software engineering experience, including software design methodology, requirements development, configuration management, trade studies, and product defect tracking
• Basic proficiency in at least one modern language/stack (C++, Java, or Python). Academic projects, internships, or personal code are acceptable.
• Foundational Docker knowledge (building and running containers) and exposure to Kubernetes concepts (pods, Deployments, Services, ConfigMaps, Helm charts).
• Experience (or coursework) creating simple CI/CD pipelines (GitLab CI, GitHub Actions, or Jenkins) that run builds, tests, and basic security scans.
• Understanding of REST APIs, OpenAPI/Swagger documentation basics, and JSON data exchange (Protobuf a plus).
• Familiarity with testing practices – writing unit tests and basic integration tests.
• Comfortable using Git (feature branches, pull requests, and code reviews).
• Possess interpersonal skills and are an effective communicator.
• Have the ability to collaborate effectively in a team environment.
• Are able to obtain a Top‑Secret level security clearance. If selected, you will be subject to a government security clearance investigation and must meet the requirements for access to classified information. Eligibility requirements include U.S. citizenship.

Responsibilities

• Assist in designing and implementing backend services, APIs, and data pipelines for space‑operations software.
• Help build and maintain containerized applications and contribute to CI/CD pipelines under guidance.
• Participate in adding security controls throughout the development lifecycle (DevSecOps).
• Support development of event‑driven or messaging‑based components (e.g., basic Kafka/RabbitMQ usage).
• Follow compliance procedures for classified environments, including air‑gapped deployments and controlled updates.
• Identify and solve issue, monitor, and improve system performance and observability in test and staging environments.
• Participate in code reviews, learn from architecture discussions, and receive mentorship on standard methodologies.

Skills

C++

Java

Python

Docker

Kubernetes

CI/CD

REST APIs

Git

Security clearance

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field

Master's degree (preferred)

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

Git

GitLab CI

GitHub Actions

Jenkins

Job description

Johns Hopkins APL invites applications for an Associate Software Engineer to design, develop, and maintain critical software that supports National Security Space operations in a TS/SCI environment. You will work on scalable, secure, and observable systems for space‑domain applications such as command‑and‑control, data processing, mission planning, and multi‑domain integration tools.

The role emphasizes DevSecOps practices, cloud‑native architectures, and secure development/deployment in