Data Engineer 2 - TS required - Washington DC area

Bow Wave LLC; Arlington (VA); On-site; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

Bow Wave LLC in Arlington, VA is seeking an entry-level data engineer to assist in designing, developing, and maintaining basic ETL pipelines for ingesting, transforming, and loading datasets under guidance.

You will work with analysts, data scientists, and stakeholders to translate requirements into simple data transformations, run validation queries, and help document data flows and processes. This role offers hands-on learning in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• 0-1 years of professional data experience or through coursework/internships.
• Foundational exposure to SQL, ETL concepts, and data migration.
• Working knowledge of SQL queries, joins, and aggregations.
• Introductory Python for data manipulation.
• Exposure to ETL/workflow tools like Airflow or Talend.
• Understanding of data warehousing concepts and schema basics.
• Familiarity with cloud storage/compute platforms (AWS S3/Redshift, Azure).

Responsibilities

• Assist in designing, developing, and maintaining basic ETL pipelines.
• Support data structures analysis, mappings, and data quality checks.
• Help ensure data accuracy and integrity by running validation queries.
• Contribute to data migration tasks and mapping source data.
• Collaborate with analysts, data scientists, and stakeholders to translate requirements.
• Monitor pipeline performance and help troubleshoot operational issues.
• Document data flows and transformation logic for maintainability.

Skills

SQL basics

Python basics

ETL concepts

Data warehousing basics

Data profiling

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Tools

Apache Airflow

Talend

Cloud platforms basics

Job description

Education Requirement: Bachelor's Degree

Key Responsibilities

• Assist in designing, developing, and maintaining basic ETL pipelines for ingesting, transforming, and loading datasets under the guidance of more experienced engineers.
• Support analysis of data structures, mappings, and data quality checks to identify issues or gaps.
• Help ensure data accuracy, consistency, and integrity by running validation queries, profiling datasets, and supporting data cleanup efforts.
• Contribute to data migration tasks, such as mapping source data to target systems and running migration scripts.
• Collaborate with analysts, data scientists, and business stakeholders to translate requirements into simple data transformations or pipeline updates.
• Monitor pipeline performance and assist in troubleshooting operational issues, escalating complex problems as needed.
• Help document data flows, transformation logic, and operational processes to support maintainability and knowledge sharing.

Required Skills & Experience

• 0-1 Years of Professional Experience
• Foundational exposure to data analysis, ETL concepts, or data migration activities-via coursework, internships, personal projects, or early professional experience.
• Working knowledge of SQL, including writing basic queries, joins, and aggregations.
• Familiarity with Python for data manipulation or automation tasks (introductory level acceptable).
• Introductory experience with ETL or workflow tools such as Apache Airflow, Talend, or similar platforms.
• Understanding of basic data warehousing concepts, such as staging, fact/dimension models, or schema structure.
• Exposure to cloud-based data storage or compute platforms (e.g., AWS S3/Redshift, Google BigQuery, Azure Storage).

Bonus / Preferred Qualifications

• Hands on or coursework experience with cloud ecosystems such as AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud Platform.
• Exposure to big data technologies (Hadoop, Spark, or distributed processing frameworks).
• Familiarity with data visualization tools (Power BI, Tableau, Looker) and version control systems such as Git.
• Experience building or supporting automated data workflows using orchestration tools or scheduled scripting.

Core Skills & Competencies

• Foundational ETL development and data pipeline understanding
• Data profiling and validation
• SQL and Python basics
• Understanding of data warehousing fundamentals
• Collaboration with analysts, engineers, and business stakeholders
• Problem solving mindset and willingness to learn
• Clear communication and strong documentation skills
• Adaptability in fast paced, evolving environments