Technical Application Field Scientist-1

University of Washington•Seattle, WA

1d•$84,156 - $99,000

About The Position

This position will support the Transportation Data Equity Initiative project sponsored by the USDOT program for the Taskar Center for Accessibility (TCAT). This innovative data infrastructure project, with a broad partnership among state departments of transportation, transportation service providers, industry and community partners, seeks to enable mobility equity by creating an interoperable, shared data infrastructure to fill in gaps in current transportation data and ultimately, provide travelers needed information they can trust. Detailed, accurate data about pedestrian networks, travel environments (transit facilities, etc.) and on-demand travel services is crucial for any trip planner, trip concierge, wayfinding, or exploratory mobile application, in particular applications and mobile experiences serving the needs of people with disabilities, older adults, veterans, suburban and rural populations. The Technical Applications Field Scientist plays a critical role in the design, development, and deployment of a suite of GIS-based tools that support transportation agencies and municipalities in producing interoperable data aligned with the Transportation Data Exchange Infrastructure (TDEI). This position bridges technical development with field engagement, ensuring that tools are not only technically sound but also responsive to real-world needs. The engineer contributes to UX/UI design, cloud-native implementation, and data interoperability strategies, with a strong emphasis on distributed systems and containerized deployment using technologies such as Docker.

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Human Computer Design Engineering, Data Engineering, Urban Information Science, or a related field, and at least 2 years of full stack development experience .
Equivalent education and/or experience may substitute for minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license, certification, and/or registration.

Nice To Haves

Master’s Degree in Computer Science, Urban Informatics, or Human-Centered Design
Familiarity with Docker, Kubernetes, and distributed cloud environments
Experience with civic tech, open data platforms, and geospatial applications
Front end experience with HTML, CSS, JavaScript/TypeScript and at least one component framework. Examples of component frameworks include React, Vue, and Angular.
Back end experience with building web APIs using common object-oriented programming languages and frameworks. Examples include TypeScript + Express, Python + DJango, Java + Spring Boot.
Experience with at least two programming languages commonly used in full-stack web development. Examples include JavaScript/TypeScript, Python, Java, Scala, Go, and Rust.
Experience with participatory design and community engagement
Strong understanding of data governance, privacy, and security protocols
Experience with interactive web mapping technologies, e.g., Mapbox GL, MapLibre GL, Leaflet.
Experience with open-source tools and community collaboration (e.g., GitHub, OpenStreetMap)
Strong background in API design, microservices, and cloud-native architecture
Experience with best practices in authentication, authorization, and web security.
Familiarity with best practices in web UI design.
Familiarity with best practices in building accessibility-first web applications, accessibility standards and equity-focused design

Responsibilities

Tool Development & UX/UI Implementation: Assist in the design and implementation of GIS-based tools for municipalities and agencies, deployed via distributed cloud environments.
User Story Development & Data Modeling: Research best practices and develop demonstrative user stories for data tools interfacing with producers and consumers.
Automation & Quality Assurance: Implement automation for testing, quality control, and privacy/security vetting of data collection and collation processes.
Project Planning & Evaluation: Use advanced project planning techniques to manage project status, resolve deployment issues, and interface with sponsors.
Academic & Partner Dissemination: Analyze results and compile findings for academic publication and dissemination to partner organizations.
Field Engagement: Travel to partner communities and assist in community engagement workshops and tool deployment.