Summary

As an AI Engineer at NSA, you will design & implement mission-critical AI systems that keep the agency at the cutting edge of intelligence collection, processing & reporting to keep the nation safe. You'll apply expertise in data science, plus software, data & systems engineering to build, deploy & maintain AI systems while addressing entire AI life cycle, including infrastructure management, efficient model training, production deployment, performance monitoring & continuous optimization.

Duties

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AI Engineers will:

- Lead or contribute to cross-functional teams to develop and operationalize AI solutions that help solve our most challenging problems.

- Apply modern engineering techniques to design, develop, deploy and maintain end-to-end AI workflows spanning model training, inference and performance monitoring.

- Adapt and integrate diverse AI model architectures, including computer vision systems, natural language processors, audio processors, large language models (LLMs) and multi-modal frameworks to address complex mission-critical challenges.

- Monitor and maintain AI products through systematic identification of performance degradation and computational inefficiency and address these challenges through regular fine-tuning to ensure continued alignment with evolving mission needs and organizational goals.

- Maintain knowledge of current AI research and adapt emerging techniques to intelligence applications.

- Test and evaluate AI solutions against mission requirements and produce actionable recommendations.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• All applicants and employees are subject to random drug testing in accordance with Executive Order 12564.

Qualifications

ENTRY

Note that different degree fields have different requirements as described below. For degrees in Computer Science or Engineering, entry is with an Associate's degree plus 2 years of relevant experience, or a Bachelor's degree and no experience, or a Master's degree and no experience. For degrees in Information Systems, Information Technology, Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, Applied Statistics, Operations Research, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, or Physical or Biological Sciences, entry is with an Associate's degree plus 3 years of relevant experience, or a Bachelor's degree and 1 year of relevant experience. Relevant experience must be in one or more of the following: implementing production scale AI/ML (Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning) solutions, distributed model training, distributed AI/ML systems, AI/ML performance monitoring, platform engineering, cloud engineering, developing deep learning models, neural networks, sustaining/maintaining AI/ML models, implementing AI/ML algorithms, AI/ML model development and deployment, DevOps, MLOps, cloud infrastructure management, software engineering, automated testing, or containerization.

FULL PERFORMANCE Note that different degree fields have different requirements as described below. For degrees in Computer Science or Engineering, entry is with an Associate's degree plus 5 years of relevant experience, or a Bachelor's degree plus 3 years of relevant experience, or a Master's degree plus 1 year of relevant experience, or a Doctoral degree and no experience. For degrees in Information Systems, Information Technology, Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, Applied Statistics, Operations Research, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, or Physical or Biological Sciences, entry is with an Associate's degree plus 5 years of relevant experience, or a Bachelor's degree plus 3 years of relevant experience, or a Master's degree plus 1 year of relevant experience, or a Doctoral degree and 1 year of relevant experience. Relevant experience must be in one or more of the following: implementing production scale AI/ML solutions, distributed model training, distributed AI/ML systems, AI/ML performance monitoring, platform engineering, cloud engineering, developing deep learning models, sustaining/maintaining AI/ML models, implementing AI/ML algorithms, AI/ML model development and deployment, DevOps, MLOps, cloud infrastructure management, software engineering, automated testing, or containerization.

SENIOR

Entry is with an Associate's degree plus 8 years of relevant experience, or a Bachelor's degree plus 6 years of relevant experience, or a Master's degree plus 4 years of relevant experience, or a Doctoral degree plus 2 years of relevant experience. Degree must be in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, Information Technology, Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, Applied Statistics, Operations Research, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, or Physical or Biological Sciences. Relevant experience must be in two or more of the following: implementing production scale AI/ML solutions, distributed model training, distributed AI/ML systems, AI/ML performance monitoring, platform engineering, cloud engineering, developing deep learning models, sustaining/maintaining AI/ML models, implementing AI/ML algorithms, AI/ML model development and deployment, DevOps, MLOps, cloud infrastructure management, software engineering, automated testing, or containerization.

EXPERT

Entry is with an Associate's degree plus 11 years of relevant experience, or a Bachelor's degree plus 9 years of relevant experience, or a Master's degree plus 7 years of relevant experience, or a Doctoral degree plus 5 years of relevant experience. Degree must be in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, Information Technology, Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, Applied Statistics, Operations Research, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, or Physical or Biological Sciences. Relevant experience must be in three or more of the following: implementing production scale AI/ML solutions, distributed model training, distributed AI/ML systems, AI/ML performance monitoring, platform engineering, cloud engineering, developing deep learning models, sustaining/maintaining AI/ML models, implementing AI/ML algorithms, AI/ML model development and deployment, DevOps, MLOps, cloud infrastructure management, software engineering, automated testing, or containerization. Additionally, you must have experience in serving as an AI Project Team Leader/model owner.

Education

The qualifications listed are the minimum acceptable to be considered for the position.

For all of the Engineering degrees, if program is not ABET accredited, it must include specified coursework.* *Specified coursework includes courses in differential and integral calculus and 5 of the following 18 areas: (a) statics or dynamics, (b) strength of materials/stress-strain relationships, (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics, (d) thermodynamics, (e) electromagnetic fields, (f) nature and properties of materials/relating particle and aggregate structure to properties, (g) solid state electronics, (h) microprocessor applications, (i), computer systems, (j) signal processing, (k) digital design, (l) systems and control theory, (m) circuits or generalized circuits, (n) communication systems, (o) power systems, (p) computer networks, (q) software development, (r) Any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, or soil mechanics.

Additional information

Pay: Salary offers are based on candidates' education level and years of experience relevant to the position and also take into account information provided by the hiring manager/organization regarding the work level for the position.

Salary Range: $87,362 - $197,200 (Entry/Developmental, Full Performance, Senior, Expert) Salary range varies by location, work level, and relevant experience to the position.

Training will be provided based on the selectee's needs and experience.

Benefits: NSA offers a comprehensive benefits package.

Work Schedule:This is a full-time position, Monday - Friday, with basic 8hr/day work requirement between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. (flexible).

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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.