Senior Platform Engineer

Biological Sciences Division at the University of Chicago; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Retirement plan

Paid time off

Job summary

A prominent research institution in Chicago seeks a Senior Platform Engineer to support open-source software platforms for data science. Responsibilities include production support, CI/CD design, and technical mentorship. Candidates should possess a degree in a relevant field and have experience in scripting and cloud technologies. The position offers a salary range of $80,000 to $120,000, and benefits include health and retirement plans.

Qualifications

• 3+ years experience in development or deployment automation.
• Hands-on scripting experience in Bash or Python.
• Knowledge of OpenStack and AWS cloud systems.

Responsibilities

• Provide production support across open-source platforms.
• Develop CI/CD pipelines for hybrid cloud architecture.
• Mentor interns and participate in the hiring process.

Skills

Scripting (Bash, Python)

Cloud Technologies (AWS, OpenStack)

Unix/Linux Systems Administration

CI/CD Automation

Container Deployment (Docker, Kubernetes)

Education

Bachelor's degree in a related field

Advanced degree in a relevant field

Tools

Configuration Management (Ansible, Chef, Puppet)

Load-balancing Technologies (F5, Nginx)

Version Control (Git, SVN)

Job description

About The Department

The Center for Translational Data Science (CTDS) at the University of Chicago is a research center whose mission is to develop the discipline of translational data science to impactful problems in biology, medicine, healthcare, and the environment. We envision a world in which researchers have ready access to the data needed and the tools required to make data driven discoveries that increase our scientific knowledge and improve the quality of life. We architect ecosystems of large-scale commons of research data, computing resources, applications, tools, and services for the broader research community to use data at scale to pursue scientific inquiry and accelerate discovery. Learn more at https://gdc.cancer.gov/, https://gen3.org/, https://stats.gen3.org/, and https://ctds.uchicago.edu/.

Job Summary

The Senior Platform Engineer provides production support, production monitoring, CI/CD design & implementation, and security automation across the open-source software platforms CTDS develops and operates for translational data science. Responsibilities include triaging, researching, communicating, and addressing production incidents; developing common analytics from disparate system monitoring assets; defining benchmarks and forecasting to proactively mitigate incidents; and building CI/CD pipelines for hybrid cloud architecture on-premises and commercial cloud providers.

Responsibilities

• Responsible for technical tasks and timely delivery of such tasks, meeting required quality.
• Participate in complex and challenging activities, including design and implementation.
• Provide support and maintenance for existing applications.
• Provide technical mentorship to interns and onboarding staff and technical leadership in technical initiatives.
• Actively participate in the hiring process and provide fair and productive interview feedback.
• Elaborate on technical solutions internally and externally when required.
• Investigate, analyze, and resolve day‑to‑day technical problems using standard procedures.
• Work with stakeholders to gather and analyze requirements for developmental programs; receive guidance to design applications that meet university and business requirements.
• Perform code testing on components and work to ensure appropriate implementation standards are met; evaluate design alternatives for development cost and solutions.
• Support and maintain existing applications; work with web developers and respond to user requests.
• Perform other related work as needed.

Minimum Qualifications

• College or university degree in a related field.

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced degree in computer science, mathematics, statistics, engineering, or a relevant quantitative field strongly preferred.
• 3+ years experience developing infrastructure, configuration and/or deployment automation or demonstrated skills through projects, initiatives, or outstanding performance.
• Hands‑on scripting experience (Bash, Python, or other dynamic language).
• Unix/Linux programming or system administration experience.
• Experience with OpenStack and AWS (EC2/S3) cloud technologies.
• Experience with configuration management utilities (Chef, Puppet, Ansible).
• Experience with load‑balancing technologies (F5, Nginx, AWS ELB/ALB, etc.).
• Experience with source control and build systems (SVN, Git, Jenkins, etc.).
• Experience with container‑based deployment (Docker, Kubernetes).
• Experience with log aggregation tools (ELK stack, Splunk).
• Experience with security frameworks (FISMA, NIST, FIPS).
• Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, OpenStack), CI/CD, and Agile methodologies.
• Experience provisioning and managing GPU‑enabled infrastructure (NVIDIA GPUs, CUDA, multi‑GPU systems) in cloud and/or on‑prem environments.
• Familiarity with GPU orchestration in Kubernetes (e.g., NVIDIA device plugin, GPU scheduling, MIG, node affinity).
• Experience optimizing GPU utilization, memory management, and cost efficiency for compute‑intensive workloads.

Preferred Competencies

• Ability to collaborate and interact effectively with team members, following guidelines and best practices and ensuring accountability for deliverables and outcomes.
• Ability to take and provide constructive and helpful input and feedback on technical issues.
• Ability to elaborate on technical solutions internally and externally when required.
• In‑depth knowledge in core areas of DevOps technologies, including scripting languages, deployment/configuration frameworks, and/or cloud platforms.
• Ability to take multiple complex tasks and break them into smaller ones, estimating effort, prioritizing, and ensuring completion.
• Ability to work in a collaborative team and ensure accountability for deliverables and outcomes.
• Ability to prioritize and manage workload to meet project milestones and deadlines.

Working Conditions

• Office environment.

Benefits

• Benefits eligible: Yes.
• The University of Chicago offers a wide range of benefit programs and resources for eligible employees, including health, retirement, and paid time off. Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook.

Salary

Pay Range: $80,000.00 – $120,000.00.

EEO Statement

The University of Chicago is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or expression, national or ethnic origin, shared ancestry, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form. All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history.