Research Software Engineer\Data Scientist (6104U)

About Berkeley

At the University of California, Berkeley, we are committed to creating a community that fosters equity of experience and opportunity, and ensures that students, faculty, and staff of all backgrounds feel safe, welcome and included. Our culture of openness, freedom and belonging make it a special place for students, faculty and staff.

The University of California, Berkeley, is one of the world's leading institutions of higher education, distinguished by its combination of internationally recognized academic and research excellence; the transformative opportunity it provides to a large and diverse student body; its public mission and commitment to equity and social justice; and its roots in the California experience, animated by such values as innovation, questioning the status quo, and respect for the environment and nature. Since its founding in 1868, Berkeley has fueled a perpetual renaissance, generating unparalleled intellectual, economic and social value in California, the United States and the world.

We are looking for equity-minded applicants who represent the full diversity of California and who demonstrate a sensitivity to and understanding of the diverse academic, socioeconomic, cultural, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, and ethnic backgrounds present in our community. When you join the team at Berkeley, you can expect to be part of an inclusive, innovative and equity-focused community that approaches higher education as a matter of social justice that requires broad collaboration among faculty, staff, students and community partners. In deciding whether to apply for a position at Berkeley, you are strongly encouraged to consider whether your values align with our Guiding Values and Principles, our Principles of Community, and our Strategic Plan.

At UC Berkeley, we believe that learning is a fundamental part of working, and our goal is for everyone on the Berkeley campus to feel supported and equipped to realize their full potential. We actively support this by providing all of our staff employees with at least 80 hours (10 days) of paid time per year to engage in professional development activities. To find out more about how you can grow your career at UC Berkeley, visit grow.berkeley.edu.

Departmental Overview

The problems facing our environment are becoming increasingly complex and they are outpacing efforts to address them. This includes challenges ranging from climate change, to the global extinction crisis, to issues associated with environmental justice. We must act both smarter and faster to head off severe consequences for people and the planet. Data Science approaches offer a transformative opportunity to increase both the rate and impact of environmental problem-solving.

Launched in 2022, the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Center for Data Science and Environment (DSE) at Berkeley (https://dse.berkeley.edu) is a partnership between UC Berkeley's Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management and the Division of Computing, Data Science, and Society, with the financial support of Eric and Wendy Schmidt, working to take on these challenges.

The Center aims to contribute to the global community who are similarly working to take on these challenges in four key areas:

• Generating ground-breaking computational/data science discoveries motivated by pressing environmental questions;
• Producing scalable solutions to critical threats facing the environment, powered by open-source tools;
• Deploying these solutions widely, taking advantage of modern cloud infrastructure and open data/open software, and maintaining a design philosophy of vendor neutrality to ensure that community needs are prioritized;
• Creating an enhanced pipeline of young environmental leaders connected to local communities and organizations to meet their needs and translate our research findings and technological developments into practical impacts.

The success of this effort relies on people, our ability to build upon the success of others, and to make new contributions that allow others to build on what we create.

The Schmidt Center for DSE is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. We aim to foster an environment that is safe and open to all work together with RCNR, CDSS, and Campus to continually learn and grow in our ability to do so.

Data Science & Environment (DSE) Engineers play a critical role in developing and delivering on all technical aspects of our given project efforts.

You have a passion for using creative coding methods to help develop and implement visualizations and other interactive data-enabled solutions and you would be excited to see your work have an impact on the challenges facing our environment.

As an experienced data scientist/research software engineer, you are excited to work with interdisciplinary teams and to and contribute to a program's technical needs. For example, learn more about our Biodiversity and Climate Resilience Programs at https://dse.berkeley.edu/programs.

Application Review Date

The First Review Date for this job is: 07/24/2023.

Responsibilities

• Plans, designs, develops, modifies, debugs, deploys and evaluates data science/computational science research software technologies and visualizations.
• Works closely with Program Manager, Senior Research Software Engineers, and domain scientists where applicable to perform these responsibilities and uses domain science knowledge where relevant.
• Analyzes existing software, scientific/data science code and interactive/static visualizations or works to formulate new logic for existing systems and algorithms.
• Works closely with Program Manager, Senior Research Software Engineers and the program team to develop data-enabled software solutions to a given environmental challenge.
• Understands and applies open research and development practices, community standards and department policies and procedures relating to work assignments.
• May serve as technical lead for a research and development project of moderate scope.
• Has the ability to negotiate research and development project plans with interested collaborators, stakeholders and users as applicable.
• Works both independently and in collaboration with the program team and stakeholders to design and implement technical solutions to environmental challenges.
• Works closely with the team Program Manager to prioritize work needs and opportunities to address given needs.
• Documents usage modes, capabilities, characteristics and performance of research codes/software/ data visualizations.
• Publishes and presents, based on research and development work, results about data science techniques and tools, performance and algorithm enhancement in research venues to attract usage from domain science communities, or to promote latest technologies within the community.
• Communicates technical program details effectively with a wide variety of audiences to ensure understanding and engagement with program stakeholders.

Required Qualifications

• Intermediate knowledge of open data science/research software development.
• Advanced skills, and demonstrated experience associated with deployment of data science applications, tools, and visualizations.
• Demonstrated ability to regularly interface with management.
• Demonstrated ability to contribute research and technical content to program outputs.
• Demonstrated effective communication and interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate technical information to technical and non-technical personnel at various levels in the organization and to external research and education audiences.
• Proven skills and experience in independently resolving broad computing/data problems using introductory and/or intermediate principles.
• Self-motivated and works independently and as part of a team.
• Able to learn effectively and meet deadlines.
• Proven ability to successfully work on multiple concurrent projects.
• Proven ability to understand research computing/data needs, mapping use cases to requirements and how systems/software/infrastructure can support those needs and meet the requirements. Demonstrated ability to develop and implement such solutions.
• Demonstrated experience and ability to collaborate effectively with all levels of staff; technical, students, faculty and administrators.
• Bachelor's degree in related area and/or equivalent experience/training.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience or interest in contributing to the development of applications with environmental impact.
• Experience developing scientific software packages and working in an open software environment.
• Experience with the modern Python or R stacks for geospatial/environmental problems, and/or javascript tools for interactive scientific visualization.

Salary & Benefits

This is a 100% full-time (40 hrs a week) exempt career position, which is paid monthly and eligible for full UC Benefits.

For information on the comprehensive benefits package offered by the University, please visit the University of California's Compensation & Benefits website.

Under California law, the University of California, Berkeley is required to provide a reasonable estimate of the compensation range for this role and should not offer a salary outside of the range posted in this job announcement. This range takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to experience, skills, knowledge, abilities, education, licensure and certifications, analysis of internal equity, and other business and organizational needs. It is not typical for an individual to be offered a salary at or near the top of the range for a position. Salary offers are determined based on final candidate qualifications and experience.

The full salary range for this position is $82,400.00 - $151,400.00.

The budgeted salary or hourly range that the University reasonably expects to pay for this position is $111,000.00 - $116,000.00.

How to Apply

• To apply, please submit your resume and cover letter.

Other Information

• This is not a visa opportunity.
• Ability to work at the DSE collaborative space on UC Berkeley campus, with flexibility in terms of timing, preferred, though fully remote candidates will also be considered.

Equal Employment Opportunity

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status. For more information about your rights as an applicant, please see the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission poster.

For the complete University of California nondiscrimination and affirmative action policy, please see the University of California Discrimination, Harassment, and Affirmative Action in the Workplace policy.