Junior DevOps Engineer: Cloud, Kubernetes & AWS

Stcnet; United States; On-site; Full time

Job description

We are seeking a Junior DevOps Specialist to support the National Weather Service (NWS) and the AWIPS Application Environment contract.

The role supports a cloud-native, web-based modernization effort for operational forecasting systems. The Junior DevOps Specialist will assist with building and maintaining CI/CD pipelines, AWS cloud infrastructure, and Kubernetes deployments that support mission‑critical applications and modern software delivery practices.

Minimum requirements: Early-career DevOps engineer with experience in AWS, Kubernetes, automation, cloud-native technologies supporting operational federal systems.

About Science and Technology Corporation (STC)

STC is a science, sensors, and systems company founded in 1979. We continually expand our Earth and Space Sciences support capabilities to NASA, NOAA, DoD, and other Federal and State agencies. Our staff support many of the operational missions that monitor the heartbeat of our planet through a growing number of Earth Observing System of Systems platforms and direct field research.

We also research and investigate leading-edge observing technologies and assist in their integration into operations.

Responsibilities

Specific duties will include:

CI/CD & Automation

• Build and maintain GitLab CI/CD pipelines for micro-frontends and microservices.
• Support automated testing, security scanning, and deployment workflows.
• Assist with container builds and management of AWS ECR container registries.
• Support GitOps workflows and deployment automation activities.
• Assist with implementing blue‑green and canary deployment strategies.
• Support provisioning and management of infrastructure using Terraform (Infrastructure as Code).
• Assist with AWS cloud services including EKS, Lambda, S3, RDS PostgreSQL, DynamoDB, Redis, CloudFront, API Gateway, and Application Load Balancers.
• Support auto‑scaling, monitoring, cost optimization, and disaster recovery activities.
• Assist with cloud infrastructure maintenance and deployment support.
• Deploy and manage Kubernetes workloads including Deployments and StatefulSets.
• Support Helm chart development and application packaging activities.
• Assist with troubleshooting pod failures, deployment issues, and resource constraints.
• Support Kubernetes cluster operations and monitoring activities.

Security & Compliance

• Support FISMA High and FedRAMP Moderate compliance activities.
• Assist with IAM policy management, Secrets Manager, and encryption configurations.
• Support network security configurations including WAF and Security Groups.
• Assist with AWS Config and Security Hub audit activities.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Systems, Engineering, or related technical field, or equivalent experience.
• 1–2 years of experience supporting DevOps, cloud infrastructure, system administration, or related technical work.
• Familiarity with AWS cloud services such as EC2, S3, RDS, Lambda, or EKS.
• Familiarity with CI/CD tools such as GitLab CI/CD, GitHub Actions, or Jenkins.
• Experience working with Docker and Kubernetes.
• Familiarity with scripting languages such as Python, Bash, or Node.js.
• Basic understanding of Infrastructure as Code concepts using Terraform or AWS CDK.
• Familiarity with Linux administration and Git version control.
• Understanding of networking fundamentals including VPCs and load balancers.
• Strong problem‑solving, analytical, and communication skills.
• Ability to work effectively within a collaborative Agile team environment.

Job Requirements

• Experience supporting federal government systems or compliance environments such as FISMA or FedRAMP.
• AWS or Kubernetes certifications such as Solutions Architect, CKA, or CKAD are a plus.
• Familiarity with monitoring and observability tools such as CloudWatch, Prometheus, Grafana, or Sentry.
• Exposure to GitOps, ArgoCD, or service mesh technologies such as Istio or Linkerd.
• Familiarity with microservices and micro‑frontend architectures.
• Experience supporting real‑time web applications is a plus.

Benefits

• Paid Time Off Starting at 80 hrs/yr, 11 Federal holidays, and 56 hrs/yr Sick Leave
• 401K with up to 4% employer matching contribution
• Flexible spending account
• Health savings account

We are equal opportunity/affirmative action employers, committed to diversity in the workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status, or any other protected characteristic under state or local law.