Computational Data Scientist
About The Position
The Mission, Concepts and Capabilities (MCC) division of Applied Research Associates, Inc. (ARA) is seeking a Computational Data Scientist to join a multidisciplinary team developing agentic AI models and visualization tools for Department of Defense data analytics. The role contributes to software tools for the defense community, including interactive training materials, weapons-effects modeling and simulation applications, and artificial intelligence solutions supporting research and development projects. Hybrid work is permissible depending on evolving project requirements. Representative work includes creating interactive training materials for weapons-effects applications with Jupyter and Marimo Notebooks; building visualizations and dashboards for sensor analytics; developing adult-learning tools for presentation and deployment in Jupyter Books; and creating agentic AI tools using large language reasoning models to automate complex scientific analysis and advanced search and discovery. The position also involves data preparation and analysis, machine learning, computer vision, software deployment, and support for testing and demonstrations in unclassified and classified environments.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in data science, computational science, computer science, mathematics, artificial intelligence, engineering, or a related field, with 2–4 years of experience; or a master’s degree in one of these fields with 0–2 years of experience.
- Strong Python programming skills.
- Experience with the Jupyter suite, such as Jupyter Lab, Jupyter Notebooks, or Jupyter Book.
- Hands-on project experience, academic or otherwise, in data science, data visualization, machine learning, and/or data analytics.
- Eagerness to learn new tools and techniques.
- Must be a U.S. citizen and able to obtain and maintain a Department of Defense secret security clearance.
Nice To Haves
- Previous internship or support experience with the Department of Defense.
- Active security clearance.
- Experience developing applications for ATAK or Android with Kotlin.
- Advanced degree (MS or PhD) in data science, computational science, artificial intelligence, computer science, mathematics, engineering, or a related field.
- Experience with industry-standard data visualization and machine learning tools such as OpenCV, SciKit, R, or TensorFlow.
- Familiarity with interactive visualization tools such as Matplotlib, Plotly, HoloViz, Julia, D3, and Bokeh.
- Programming experience in other memory-safe-by-default languages such as Rust and Java.
Responsibilities
- Collect, curate, impute, and normalize structured and unstructured data.
- Develop interactive visualizations and dashboards in Marimo and Jupyter notebooks to support knowledge discovery and analysis, using libraries such as Plotly, Bokeh, and HoloViz.
- Develop machine learning algorithms and models using libraries such as SciKit-Learn, TensorFlow, and PyTorch.
- Develop adult-learning tools and applications within Jupyter Book.
- Develop computer vision approaches to analyze images and video.
- Analyze outputs from engineering and first-principles physics codes.
- Deploy machine learning and analytics tools for operational use.
- Support testing, evaluation, and demonstrations of software and analytics tools in unclassified and classified environments.
- Learn new skills and take on new challenges to improve algorithm and software performance in previously unanticipated ways.
Benefits
- Competitive benefits that address employees’ needs now and in the future.
- Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP); employees are eligible for contributions.
Stand Out From the Crowd
Upload your resume and get instant feedback on how well it matches this job.
What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Entry Level
