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open positions at million concepts

• Technical Staff

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Technical Staff

We are hiring one or more technical staff members to work on a variety of projects. The specific level and scope of responsibilities for each of these positions will depend on the prior experience and expertise of the applicant. All members of the Million Concepts technical staff are expected to combine expertise in software development with a high level of scientific literacy in order to produce culturally relevant and technologically useful solutions for expert stakeholders across a variety of domains. The minimum rate of pay is $30 / hr. We offer a 401(k) with a 4% employer match. The position(s) will be part-time, flex-time, and fully remote (within the U.S. only). We anticipate opportunities to expand the position(s) to full time in the future, if desired. The full job posting can also be accessed here.

Responsibilities

• Writing tests to ensure both application stability and data correctness
• Interpreting legacy documentation, format specifications, and/or code
• Consistent management and organization of test data within a family of cloud resources
• Work with project team to meet specification needs
• Collaborate with other developers to design and optimize code
• Document all programming tasks and procedures
• Validate scientific integrity of data
• Contribute to research publications and presentations
• Perform routine software maintenance

Mandatory Qualifications

• Excellent written communication skills in English, in both formal and informal contexts. Most interactions will occur over email or Slack.
• Meaningful prior software development experience. Ideally, this includes advanced knowledge of Python and familiarity with the standard scientific Python stack (numpy, pandas, astropy, matplotlib, etc.).
• Comfort with the Linux command line.
• Working knowledge of standard Python packaging, distribution, and deployment tools, particularly including git and conda.
• Familiarity with a variety of software testing strategies, particularly including unit testing and end-to-end regression testing.
• Good general scientific literacy and demonstrated understanding of the standards and expectations of scientific computing, along with the ability to understand how scientific domain experts (and other stakeholders) use and think about software and data.
• Ability to work autonomously toward project objectives and high motivation to produce top-quality work. Independently driven to ship clean, reliable, well-documented code with good test coverage.
• Ability and desire to flexibly determine tasks and objectives in close collaboration with a project team.
• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills.
• Ability to thrive in a fully-remote work environment.
• Extreme trustworthiness.

Optional Qualifications

• Prior knowledge of astronomical or scientific image data processing and / or scientific data calibration
• Advanced formal training in one or more relevant scientific or engineering disciplines (astronomy, planetary science, computer science, mathematics, etc.)
• Experience with Amazon Web Services or other cloud computing environments
• Systems administration experience, and more generally the ability and inclination to maintain and troubleshoot information technology systems
• Graphical design, UX, or other artistic ability
• Web design or development experience
• Project management expertise
• Experience with both large- and small-scale data design and optimization
• Proficiency with programming languages other than Python, including but not limited to C, C++, C#, HTML, Java, Javascript, IDL, Matlab, Perl, SQL, and shell scripting languages.

Possible Responsibilities

• Writing tests to ensure both application stability and data correctness
• Interpreting legacy documentation, format specifications, and/or code
• Consistent management and organization of test data within a family of cloud resources
• Collaborate with other developers to design and optimize code
• User-facing software / application documentation
• Developer-facing software systems documentation, including both library documentation and documentation of programming tasks and procedures
• Validating scientific integrity of data
• Contributing to research publications and presentations
• Software and systems maintenance and troubleshooting
• Provide technical support, possibly both client-facing and internal to Million Concepts
• Design and develop new software tools and infrastructure
• Extend or modify existing software tools and infrastructure
• Perform other technical tasks determined in collaboration with project teams
• Scope and budget work effort as part of new or ongoing projects
• Act as task lead / project manager over new or ongoing projects
• Work in other direct client-facing roles to help clients meet their objectives within cost, resource, and time constraints
• Apply non-technical expertise as applicable to an individual project or Million Concept’s overall goals, possibly including, but not limited to, expertise in art, literature, prose composition, cultural studies or ethnography, philosophy, finance or business, and accounting

Employment Type

This is an approximately half-time hourly flex-time position, available to start immediately but no later than May 2024, with an expected term of 2 years, pending continued availability of funds. Rate of pay is contingent upon experience and expertise of the applicant and responsibilities of the role, but will not be less than $30 / hr. Million Concepts offers a 401(k) program with 4% match. If desired, opportunities to expand the position to full time or to extend the term of appointment are anticipated to exist.

Location

Million Concepts is headquartered in Louisville KY with a fully remote workforce. Remote work from within the United States is possible.

Eligibility

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Application / Indication of Interest

If you are excited about this position but do not consider yourself to meet all qualifications or have highly relevant experience, we encourage you to apply anyway. A balance of factors—including experience, aptitude, and enthusiasm—will be considered in hiring decisions. To be considered for this role, please fill out this Google Form.