HPC Software Engineer 3 - Research Computing

Hpc Software Engineer

At PNNL, our core capabilities are divided among major departments that we refer to as Directorates within the Lab, focused on a specific area of scientific research or other function, with its own leadership team and dedicated budget.

Our directorates related to Mission Support & Operations include Office of General Counsel, Business Services, Communications and External Engagement, Operational Systems, Communications and Information Technology, and Performance Management.

At PNNL, our Computing and Information Technology organization is redefining how we work and innovate by reimagining the digital workplace. We empower research and streamline operations—making both faster, smarter, and more efficient—so our professionals can tackle some of the world's toughest challenges in science, energy, and national security. Our experts in AI, cybersecurity, design, and engineering work side by side, using real-time insights and human-centered design to break down barriers. Ready to make your mark on tomorrow? Come work with us.

Research Computing empowers researchers by removing technical barriers to discovery. We provide access to cutting-edge resources, including high-performance computing (HPC), GPU-accelerated compute, scientific software, research data management (featuring the PNNL Research Library), and cloud computing. Through events like TechFest, which brings staff together to showcase projects and discuss new research possibilities, we cultivate a vibrant culture of computing and drive interdisciplinary collaboration to advance computationally enabled science.

Responsibilities

Research Computing advances scientific discovery by providing researchers computational tools to accelerate their research outcomes. We support computationally enabled science by providing researchers access to computational building blocks (e.g., HPC, Machine Learning environments, Data Management Tools etc.). We also provide services, expertise, and support to researchers to optimize their use of our capabilities (e.g., HPC & Machine Learning Consulting, and machine Learning workflow management, etc.), all while fostering a culture of computing through interdisciplinary collaboration and access to computational resources.

We are seeking an HPC Software engineer to join project teams building HPC and AI/ML solutions to support a broad variety of scientific domains.

The scope of work will be diverse and will include joining existing project teams across the research directorates, engaging and understanding their domain and project needs. Then designing, building, and implementing applications and pipelines to support their various needs.

The work will also include implementing broadly applicable operational solutions to support ranges of projects and domains. This may include pipelines, automation, containerization, and various technologies and platforms.

An element of the work will also be joining existing research efforts and developing software and algorithms to support the project research focus. Additionally, this will include helping domain scientists leverage various ML techniques. You must understand and have experience in a mix of technologies such as, Python, C, PyTorch, and OpenMPI. Experience with HPC system engineering is required. For aspects of the work, experience and interest in Machine Learning workflows, and large language models will be an advantage. In addition, it would be advantageous to have experience in other scientific or engineering domains and mathematics.

Initially, you will join existing project teams, and as such, you will be expected to operate within specific guidelines and coding standards. As a level 3, you will be increasingly responsible for building your own opportunities within PNNL, leading other team members in developing technical solutions, and developing opportunities for other staff to follow. Additionally, you are expected to mentor others and lead tasks on projects.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

• PhD and 1 year of Software Engineering experience -OR-
• MS/MA and 3 years of Software Engineering experience -OR-
• BS/BA and 5 years of Software Engineering experience -OR-
• AA and 14 years of Software Engineering experience in designing, architecting, programming, deploying, and automating software solutions in support of scientific research or consumer digital product development -OR-
• HS/GED and 16 years of Software Engineering experience in designing, architecting, programming, deploying, and automating software solutions in support of scientific research or consumer digital product development

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with HPC software builders, such as Spack.
• Knowledge of and experience supporting Slurm.
• Experience participating in working with scientists and engineers of various scientific domains and being able to bridge between the various domains and computer and data science.
• Experience working with project teams, especially including domain scientists, understanding scientific realms, and applying computer science and mathematical principles in support of the scientific mission of the project.
• Experience with building large language models to support research.