Application Programmer/QA Engineer
About The Position
The Application Programmer/QA Engineer provides application programming and quality assurance engineering support for NAL scientific research data applications using Drupal, PHP, Tripal, Chado, and DevSecOps practices. The role supports software development, application modernization, quality assurance, testing, security, and Operations & Maintenance (O&M), working with government stakeholders and technical teams. The position develops, customizes, tests, deploys, and maintains scientific research data and related web applications; analyzes existing code to determine approaches for enhancements and maintenance; and supports legacy-system modernization and technology refreshes. It also contributes to application requirements and migration planning, deployments and production releases, documentation, version control, and container-based development and deployment. Applications must meet federal accessibility requirements, security standards, and modern web development practices.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Software Engineering, or a related technical discipline, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
- At least 6 years of professional experience developing substantial applications using some or all of Drupal, PHP, Tripal, Chado, and DevSecOps practices.
- At least 4 years of general programming experience with PHP and/or Python.
- Proficiency with version control systems, including Git and GitHub.
- Experience with containerization technologies such as Docker and Podman.
- Experience in a LAMP environment and proficiency with the Linux command line.
- Ability to communicate effectively with software developers, product owners, and subject matter experts.
- Ability to analyze existing code and independently determine a course of action for application development, maintenance, and updates.
- Ability to understand and implement web application requirements.
- Expert knowledge of modern web development standards and best practices.
- Experience modernizing legacy systems and performing technology refresh initiatives.
- Ability to collaborate with systems analysts and project coordinators to evaluate and define application migration paths.
- Ability to work collaboratively and independently.
- Excellent customer service and interpersonal skills.
- Experience with relational databases, including MySQL and PostgreSQL.
- Strong experience in Linux environments, including command-line utilities and system administration.
- Expert knowledge of HTML, XHTML, and CSS standards, with practical web development experience.
- Knowledge of the U.S. Web Design System (USWDS) and the USDA Digital Strategy Playbook.
Responsibilities
- Provide application programming and QA engineering support for NAL scientific research data applications.
- Develop, customize, test, deploy, and maintain scientific research data applications and related web applications.
- Support application modernization and technology refresh initiatives for legacy systems.
- Analyze existing application code and determine approaches for enhancements, maintenance, and updates.
- Develop and execute QA processes, application testing, troubleshooting, and defect resolution.
- Collaborate with developers, product owners, subject matter experts, systems analysts, and project coordinators to evaluate requirements and define application migration paths.
- Support application deployments, software updates, production releases, and O&M activities.
- Use version control systems to manage source code and support collaborative development.
- Implement DevSecOps practices throughout the software development lifecycle.
- Use containerization technologies for application development, testing, and deployment.
- Develop and maintain technical documentation for application development, testing, deployment, and system configuration.
- Ensure applications comply with federal accessibility requirements, security standards, and modern web development practices.
- Provide technical support and collaborate with cross-functional teams to deliver secure, reliable, high-quality software solutions.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
