Research Computing Software Engineer (Platform Observability)

The Pennsylvania State University; Ferguson Township (PA); On-site; USD 69,000 - 103,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

75% tuition discount

DoD SkillBridge partner

Job summary

The Pennsylvania State University in State College, PA is seeking a Computing Software Specialist (Platform Observability) to drive observability and platform reliability in cloud-native environments.

You will design secure infrastructure, build observability stacks, and maintain CI/CD pipelines for infrastructure code while collaborating with an Agile team. On-site with option for hybrid depending on project needs.

Qualifications

• Associate Degree with 2+ years of relevant experience or an equivalent combination.
• Bachelor's Degree; no prior work experience required in some cases; relevant experience welcomed.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement secure, automated infrastructure solutions for HPC environments.
• Build and operate observability infrastructure across metrics, logging, and tracing.

Skills

DevSecOps

Linux

Configuration mgmt

Scripting

CI/CD

Container orchestration

Observability tooling

Education

Associate Degree + 2+ years experience

Bachelor's Degree

Tools

CI/CD pipelines

Container orchestration tools

Job description

POSITION SPECIFICS

We are seeking a motivated, self-starting Computing Software Specialist (Platform Observability) to join our Cloud Technology Advancement Department in the Applied Research Laboratory (ARL) at Penn State. In this role you will perform DevSecOps functions with a strong focus on observability and platform reliability — building and operating the monitoring, logging, and tracing backbone for our high-performance and cloud-native computing environments. This position would work out of our State College, PA, location. ARL is an authorized DoD SkillBridge partner and welcomes all transitioning military members to apply.

You will:

• Design and implement secure, automated infrastructure solutions for high-performance computing environments through Agile software development
• Build and operate observability infrastructure across the three pillars — metrics, logging, and tracing — including dashboards, actionable alerting, and health/performance monitoring
• Work to maintain and monitor our CI/CD pipelines to allow for frequent, trouble-free deployments of infrastructure code, and deploy/operate workloads in container orchestration environments across bare metal and cloud
• Assist in performing and reviewing pull requests, writing unit tests, and producing occasional documentation as needed
• Provide demonstrations of your work to the internal team and occasionally external customers
• Coordinate with the Agile team to identify risks, issues, requirements, and design solutions for project-level activity on a daily basis

Required Skills/Experience areas include:

• DevSecOps tools/practices and Linux-based infrastructure / system administration
• Infrastructure/automation via configuration management and scripting tools
• Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) pipeline development skills
• Container orchestration and interest in cloud-native technologies
• Observability concepts and tooling — collecting and analyzing metrics, logs, and traces

Preferred Skills/Experience areas include:

• One or more observability stacks — metrics/monitoring, log aggregation, distributed tracing, and dashboard/alerting platforms
• Service-level objectives (SLOs/SLIs) and supporting on-call/incident response practices
• Container orchestration at scale and familiarity with public, private, or hybrid cloud platforms
• Configuration management via distributed version control, and experience with containerization

Working location:

Your working location will be fully on-site located in State College, PA but options exist for hybrid of on-site/work from home based on project-dependent ability.

MINIMUM EDUCATION, WORK EXPERIENCE & REQUIRED CERTIFICATIONS

If filled as Scientific Computing Engagement Specialist (ARL) - Intermediate Professional, this position requires: Associate Degree 2+ years of relevant experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience accepted. Required Certifications: None

If filled as Scientific Computing Software Specialist (ARL) - Professional, this position requires: Bachelor's Degree. No prior relevant work experience required; previous relevant work experience accepted in lieu of education. Required Certifications: None

BACKGROUND CHECKS/CLEARANCES

Employment with the University will require successful completion of background check(s) in accordance with University policies. Notice regarding employment at the Applied Research Laboratory (ARL): Employees must be eligible to obtain a government security clearance, participate in the ARL drug testing program, and comply with electronic and physical monitoring requirements applicable to federal contractors. ARL operates in a secure information environment involving Unclassified, Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), and Classified information. Personal electronic devices brought onsite must be registered and may be restricted from certain areas. You must be a U.S. citizen to apply.

SALARY & BENEFITS

The salary range for this position, including all possible grades, is $68,604.00 - $102,900.00. Salary Structure - Information on Penn State's salary structure Penn State provides a competitive benefits package for full-time employees designed to support both personal and professional well-being. In addition to comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage, employees enjoy robust retirement plans and substantial paid time off which includes holidays, vacation and sick time. One of the standout benefits is the generous 75% tuition discount, available to employees as well as eligible spouses and children. For more detailed information, please visit our Benefits Page.

CAMPUS SECURITY CRIME STATISTICS

Pursuant to the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act and the Pennsylvania Act of 1988, Penn State publishes a combined Annual Security and Annual Fire Safety Report (ASR). The ASR includes crime statistics and institutional policies concerning campus security, such as those concerning alcohol and drug use, crime prevention, the reporting of crimes, sexual assault, and other matters. The ASR is available for review here.

EEO IS THE LAW

Penn State is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to providing employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

If you are unable to use our online application process due to an impairment or disability, please contact 814-865-1473.

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