Specify Software Developer

University of Kansas•Lawrence, KS

5d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Specify Collections Consortium is seeking a junior software developer to help develop and maintain Specify 7, an open-source web application used by museum and research institutions to manage and publish information about biological and geological collections. The platform is used by 135 institutions in 25 countries and is built with Python, Django, TypeScript, and React. The role contributes to software that supports a global mission to document the diversity of life and the natural world. Working with experienced teammates in a small, collaborative development team, the developer will build features, investigate and fix issues, write tests, document and maintain software, and improve a mature, complex system. The position offers increasing ownership of assigned work as the developer learns the platform, its architecture, and users’ needs. The team has a relatively flat structure and encourages developers to contribute across the codebase and deepen their technical expertise. This is a full-time University of Kansas employee position with a hybrid work arrangement requiring in-office days in Lawrence, Kansas. The workweek is a flexible 40 hours. Candidates must be eligible to work in the United States; the position is not eligible for H-1B sponsorship. Applications are submitted online, and review begins November 3, 2026, continuing until a qualified applicant pool is identified.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Biology, or a closely related field and 2 years of professional software development experience, or a master’s degree in a related field plus demonstrated software development experience.
Demonstrated understanding of software engineering fundamentals, including software design, implementation, debugging, testing, and version control.
Previous experience with Python and JavaScript or TypeScript, and understanding of fundamental programming concepts.
Demonstrated ability to learn independently, research unfamiliar technical problems, and apply new knowledge to assigned work.
Fundamental understanding of how web applications work.
Successful collaborative work in a team or group environment.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
Eligibility to work in the United States.

Nice To Haves

Proficiency with TypeScript and React.
Professional experience with front-end or user-interface development for end-user applications.
Competency with a variety of object-oriented and functional programming languages.
Experience with test automation, Agile development practices, CI/CD, GitHub, virtual machines, and Docker.
Experience with relational database systems, SQL, and relational database design.
Experience deploying and managing applications on AWS, including EC2, S3, and RDS.
Knowledge of or experience with AWS cloud management practices, including infrastructure as code, monitoring, and cost optimization.
Experience with a structured release process for delivering high-quality software to a user or client community.
Knowledge of or experience with biodiversity, bioinformatics, museum studies, or environmental sciences.
Experience troubleshooting web development issues using browser developer tools.
Experience using Git and GitHub collaboratively, including branching, pull requests, code review, and resolving merge conflicts.
Experience working with an existing codebase rather than exclusively developing standalone or academic projects.

Responsibilities

Develop, test, debug, document, and maintain the Specify 7 web platform using sound software engineering practices.
Investigate assigned software issues by reviewing code and documentation, reproducing problems, using development and debugging tools, and researching solutions.
Write and maintain automated tests and participate in code review and continuous integration practices to support reliable, maintainable software.
Participate in code reviews by giving and responding to constructive technical feedback and applying coding and architectural standards.
Discuss software issues and features with team members and determine technical approaches based on requirements, existing code, documentation, and established practices.
Contribute to technical and architectural discussions and decisions regarding implementation, security, standards, and software design.
Help improve development tools, workflows, testing practices, and DevOps processes.
Work with team members to understand requirements, investigate technical problems, evaluate implementation options, and develop general, flexible, maintainable, and scalable solutions.
Build an understanding of the Specify platform and its architecture, learn to work effectively within the existing complex system, and take increasing ownership of assigned work.