Senior Linux Systems Engineer

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory•Laurel, MD

23h

About The Position

The Senior Linux Systems Engineer will design, deploy, and scale hybrid platforms that connect bare-metal Linux infrastructure with Kubernetes and OpenShift orchestration. The role modernizes infrastructure and supports high-performance computing clusters, advanced research environments, and critical mission deliverables. The engineer will use Infrastructure-as-Code to automate provisioning, configuration orchestration, and continuous compliance across large-scale fleets. They will troubleshoot and resolve complex issues across Linux kernels, network fabrics, storage subsystems, and container runtimes; stand up and optimize compute clusters for compute-heavy, data-intensive workloads; and implement telemetry, logging, and proactive security monitoring across virtual and physical environments to support high availability and security. The position involves collaborating with end-users and researchers to translate technical requirements into stable operational infrastructure. The role requires the ability to obtain an interim Secret clearance by the start date and ultimately obtain a final Secret clearance; eligibility requires U.S. citizenship. APL offers a comprehensive benefits package, including education assistance, retirement plans and contributions, paid time off, medical, dental, vision, life and disability insurance, flexible spending accounts, and training and development. Additional compensation may include a sign-on bonus, relocation benefits, locality allowance, or discretionary payments for exceptional performance.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree (Computer Science preferred), or an additional 5 years of equivalent real-world technical experience.
5+ years of hands-on experience administering and tuning enterprise Linux environments, specifically RHEL.
Experience deploying and running workloads with Kubernetes, OpenShift, Docker, or Podman.
Proficiency building declarative automation pipelines using Ansible, Puppet, and shell scripting.
Ability to collaborate directly with end-users and researchers to develop stable operational infrastructure from complex technical requirements.
Current IAT Level II certification (e.g., CompTIA Security+ CE), or ability to obtain one promptly upon hire.
Ability to obtain an interim Secret security clearance by the start date and ultimately obtain a final Secret clearance; U.S. citizenship is required for eligibility.

Nice To Haves

Hands-on experience scaling 100+ node clusters, hybrid data center operations, or managing HPC job schedulers such as SLURM.
Working familiarity with defense security regimes such as NISPOM, DSS, and RMF in classified compute environments.
Ability to write clear, maintained architecture documentation and operational runbooks.
Active Secret security clearance.

Responsibilities

Design, deploy, and scale hybrid platforms bridging bare-metal Linux infrastructure with Kubernetes and OpenShift orchestration.
Automate infrastructure provisioning, configuration orchestration, and continuous system compliance across large-scale fleets using Infrastructure-as-Code.
Troubleshoot complex issues across Linux kernels, network fabrics, storage subsystems, and container runtimes, and engineer lasting fixes.
Stand up and optimize high-performance computing clusters for compute-heavy, data-intensive workloads.
Implement telemetry, logging, and proactive security monitoring across virtual and physical environments.
Collaborate with end-users and researchers to translate technical requirements into stable, operational infrastructure.