Senior Systems Engineer [CAMPUS ONLY recruitment]

University of California, Santa Cruz; California (MO); On-site; USD 122,620 - 132,300; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Full benefits

Medical, Dental & Vision Insurance

Job summary

University of California, Santa Cruz is seeking a Senior Systems Engineer to provide independent technical leadership for the UC Observatories (UCO). The role covers design, installation, and maintenance of OS, networking, storage, and virtualization infrastructure across campus and Mt.

Hamilton facilities. The position oversees VM provisioning, physical servers, firewalls, VPN, DNS/DHCP services, and user access management, ensuring robust support for astronomical research computing and

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• Advanced knowledge of IT infrastructure including Linux, networking, storage, virtualization.
• Ability to resolve highly complex issues independently.
• Knowledge of firewall, VPN, DNS, and DHCP services.
• Experience with system maintenance and UPS management.
• Experience managing user accounts and access control.

Responsibilities

• Manage and maintain UCO VM infrastructure and provisioning for research and admin use.
• Manage and maintain UCO physical servers and storage arrays.
• Maintain UCO firewalls, VPN, DNS, and DHCP services.
• Provide DNS/DHCP for campus and Mt. Hamilton environments and IP management.
• Perform periodic physical maintenance including disk replacement and power restoration.
• Provide desktop and server support for research workstations and servers.

Skills

Linux OS

Networking

Storage

Virtualization

Firewall

VPN

DNS

DHCP

VM provisioning

Google Workspace

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

Tools

VM infrastructure

Server hardware support

Virtualization platforms

Job description

Job Summary

The Senior Systems Engineer serves as a high‑level technical leader at UC Observatories (UCO), providing independent oversight and frontline support for astronomical research at the UCSC technical laboratories and the Lick Observatory on Mt. Hamilton. The incumbent leverages advanced IT concepts to manage and optimize a complex, specialized infrastructure. The Engineer acts as a strategic partner to faculty and researchers, translating scientific requirements into robust IT solutions. This role is responsible for the end‑to‑end lifecycle of UCO’s systems, including the design, installation, and maintenance of OS (Linux, Windows, Mac), networking, storage, software licensing and distribution, software testing and installation, server hardware support, and virtualization infrastructure management.

Appointment Information

Budgeted Salary: $122,620 - $132,300/year. Salary commensurate with skills, qualifications and experience.

Benefits Level Eligibility: Full benefits.

Benefits

University of California offers competitive benefits including Medical, Dental & Vision Care Insurance Plans, UC retirement, Paid Family Leave, and Paid Holidays plus accrued vacation and sick leave.

Schedule Information

• Full‑time, Fixed
• Percentage of Time: 100%, 40 Hours per Week
• Days of the Week: Mon–Fri
• Shift Includes: Day

Employee Classification

Career appointment.

Job End Date

None.

Work Location

UC Santa Cruz Main Campus.

Union Representation

Non‑Represented.

Job Code Classification

000499 (INFO SYS ANL 4) – Grade 25.

Travel

Up to 25% of the time.

Job Duties

65% – Specialized Research Computing and Infrastructure Management

• Manage and maintain UCO virtual machine (VM) infrastructure and handle VM provisioning for both research and administrative needs.
• Manage and maintain UCO physical servers, including storage arrays.
• Manage and update UCO firewalls for campus and Mt. Hamilton locations.
• Manage UCO VPN infrastructure, including user provisioning and support for VPN access for both Campus and Mt. Hamilton.
• Provide DNS and DHCP services for the UCO campus environment and partial services for the Mt. Hamilton environment, including IP address management and allocation.
• Maintain a periodic physical presence for system maintenance to perform tasks such as disk replacements, racking/deracking of systems, physical troubleshooting, power outage restoration, and UPS system management.
• Provide specialized desktop support and server support for research workstations and servers, including installation and configuration of research‑specific software and troubleshooting research computing needs.
• Manage user account creation, modification, deactivation, password resets, and access management for internal staff and external collaborators.
• Manage UCO’s separate Google Workspace domain, including email routing, mailbox administration, and support for unique UCO mail routing requirements.

35% – Coordination and Complex Issue Resolution

• Escalate complex issues and resource constraints to ITS and PBSci leadership as needed.
• Contribute to the scoping, estimation, and resourcing of significant project work, infrastructure upgrades, and technical debt remediation.
• Ensure systems align with policy and process as established with UCOP and UCSC ITS standards.
• Document complex system configurations, processes, and project scope requirements related to the UCO specialized research computing environment and infrastructure, including firewall and VPN management, VM provisioning, and service handoffs to Central IT.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in related area and/or equivalent experience/training.
• Advanced knowledge of IT infrastructure, including Linux OS, networking, storage, server hardware support, and virtualization infrastructure management.
• In‑depth knowledge of complex IT areas of specialization necessary to resolve highly complex issues.
• Knowledge of firewall, VPN, DNS, and DHCP services, including IP address management and allocation.
• Demonstrated ability to resolve highly complex issues independently by evaluating variable factors and recommending technical methods and techniques.
• Skills in performing physical system maintenance, including disk replacements, racking/deracking, troubleshooting, power outage restoration, and UPS system management.
• Ability to manage the user account lifecycle, including creation, modification, deactivation, password resets, and access management.

Preferred Qualifications

• Knowledge of information security policies, procedures, and standards applicable to UC Institutional Information and IT Resources.
• Advanced systems administration skills in design, installation, maintenance, and optimization of complex, specialized IT infrastructure.
• Strong technical leadership skills to provide independent oversight and frontline support for astronomical research computing.
• Ability to act as a strategic partner to faculty and researchers, translating scientific requirements into robust IT solutions.
• Advanced troubleshooting and support skills for research workstations, servers, and research‑specific software installation/configuration.
• Ability to contribute to the scoping, estimation, and resourcing of significant project work, infrastructure upgrades, and technical debt remediation.
• Excellent written communication skills for documenting complex system configurations, processes, and project scope requirements.
• Interpersonal skills to effectively coordinate with Central ITS teams and clearly communicate complex issues to technical and non‑technical personnel and leadership.

Special Conditions of Employment

• Selected candidate will be required to pass a pre‑employment criminal history background check.
• Selected candidate must pass the employment misconduct disclosure process.
• Must possess a valid license to drive in the state of California and participate in the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) pull notice program.
• Ability to work long periods of time at a computer with or without accommodation.
• The selected candidate will be required to work all scheduled hours on‑site.
• Ability to work a variable schedule.
• Ability to work a variable schedule including evenings and weekends.
• Ability to work occasional evenings and weekends as directed.
• Ability to respond to emergencies after hours as necessary.
• Selected candidate will be required to complete training within established time frames as directed including UC compliance training.
• The University of California has implemented a Vaccination Policy covering all employees. Employees, including new hires, are required to comply with any applicable policies relating to the University of California vaccine program.
• Per the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act (CANRA), this position has been identified as a Mandated Reporter. The selected candidate will be required to report known or suspected child abuse or neglect as defined by CANRA and will be required to sign a Statement Acknowledging Requirement to Report Child Abuse prior to commencing employment. CANRA Penal Codes, and related definitions, requirements, and responsibilities may be obtained here.
• Exercise the utmost discretion in managing sensitive information learned in the course of performing their duties. Sensitive information includes but is not limited to employee and student records, health and patient records, financial data, strategic plans, proprietary information, and any other sensitive or non‑public information learned during the course and scope of employment. Understands that sensitive information should be shared on a limited basis and actively takes steps to limit access to sensitive information to individuals who have legitimate business need to know. Ensure that sensitive information is properly safeguarded. Follow all organizational policies and laws on data protection and privacy. This includes secure handling of physical and digital records and proper usage of IT systems to prevent data leaks. The unauthorized or improper disclosure of confidential work‑related information obtained from any source on any work‑related matter is a violation of these expectations.

Misconduct Disclosure Requirement

As a condition of employment, the final candidate who accepts a conditional offer of employment will be required to disclose if they have been subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct; received notice of any allegations or are currently the subject of any administrative or disciplinary proceedings involving misconduct; have left a position after receiving notice of allegations or while under investigation in an administrative or disciplinary proceeding involving misconduct; or have filed an appeal of a finding of misconduct with a previous employer.

• "Misconduct" means any violation of the policies or laws governing conduct at the applicant's previous place of employment, including, but not limited to, violations of policies or laws prohibiting sexual harassment, sexual assault, or other forms of harassment, discrimination, dishonesty, or unethical conduct, as defined by the employer.
• For reference, below are UC's policies addressing some forms of misconduct:
  • UC Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment Policy
  • UC Anti‑Discrimination Policy
  • Abusive Conduct in the Workplace

Safety Statement

All UCSC employees must understand and follow job safety procedures, attend required health and safety training, proactively promote safety at work, and promptly report actual and potential accidents and injuries.

EEO/AA

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status or other protected categories covered by the UC Anti‑Discrimination Policy. It is the policy of the University of California to undertake affirmative action and anti‑discrimination efforts, consistent with its obligations as a Federal and State contractor.