The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory

Mid-Level Full Stack Web Developer

Information Technology
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 2-4 years of professional full-stack development or 3+ years in strong personal/project experience.
  • Ability to obtain an Active Secret clearance, with a preference for an existing Secret clearance.
  • Knowledge of JavaScript/TypeScript, React basics, and a backend language (Node.js, Python, or Java).
  • Familiarity with Git and issue-tracking tools like Jira or GitLab.
  • BA/BS in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent experience.

Responsibilities

  • Develop features and fix bugs under senior guidance using React, TypeScript, and backend languages.
  • Write unit and integration tests, following test-driven development practices.
  • Participate in daily stand-ups, sprint planning, and retrospectives.
  • Review code with peers and gradually own small components or services.
  • Support deployment pipelines and monitor production health through logs and alerts.

Benefits

  • Hybrid work model (3 days on-site, 2 days remote) to enhance work-life balance.
  • Opportunities for professional growth and hands-on experience in mission-critical software.
  • Mentorship from senior staff to accelerate technical skill development.
  • Support programs for employee wellness, including workshops and social events.
  • Engagement in employee clubs and activities to foster community.
Full Job Description

Job Description Summary:

Location

South Tampa, FL – Hybrid (3days onsite, 2days remote).

Drapers FullStack Group builds missioncritical web applications for military, government, and commercial customers. We operate like an incubator, giving engineers space to experiment, iterate, and deliver software that protects lives and advances the national interest.

Why It Matters

As a mid-level engineer, youll get handson experience building software that powers nationalsecurity missions. Working under senior mentors, youll rapidly grow technical depth while contributing code that goes live in real customer environments.

Core Responsibilities

- Develop features and fix bugs under guidance of senior staff using React+TypeScript and a backend language (Node.js/Python).
- Write unit and integration tests; adopt testdriven development practices.
- Participate in daily standups, sprint planning, and retrospectives.
- Review code with peers, absorb architectural guidance, and gradually own small components or services.
- Support deployment pipelines and monitor production health (logs, alerts).

Required Qualifications

- 2-4years professional fullstack development (or 3+years strong personal/project experience).
- Ability to obtain an Active Secret clearance (existing Secret clearance preferred).
- Working knowledge of JavaScript/TypeScript, React basics, and a serverside language (Node.js, Python, or Java).
- Familiarity with Git and issuetracking tools (Jira, GitLab, etc.).
- BA/BS in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent practical experience.

Preferred Qualifications

- Exposure to Docker containers and simple `dockercompose` workflows.
- Experience with a cloud platform (AWS, GCP, Azure) through projects or labs.
- Understanding of RESTful APIs and basic authentication (OAuth).
- Demonstrated curiosity: opensource contributions, hackathon projects, or a technical blog.

About You

- Insatiable appetite to learn new technologies and share knowledge.
- Comfortable navigating ambiguity and forging clear paths to success.
- Passionate about building products youd proudly use yourself.
- Thrives in a team that pushes each other to excel daily.

The description below provides further information on Draper's view of its mid-level (MTS-2) staff members.

Job Description:

Duties/Responsibilities
 Independently execute task assignments under the some oversight of program leadership and/or senior staff.
 Designs algorithms using modern theory and proven techniques, adheres to software best practices.
 Analyzes designs to demonstrate performance and functionality.
 Develops and executes software tests to check compliance with requirements.
 Prepares technical data, procedures, reports, drawings, manuals, and other required documentation.
 Communicates with customers and stakeholders to establish requirements and describe the design and deliverables.
 Identify challenges and risks associated with assigned tasks and communicate them to project leadership.
 Drives solutions to complex problems with limited direction - contribute to requirements development, propose unique solutions, and adapt appropriately to changes in requirements.
 Provides insight and suggest adaptations or modifications to processes and/or applications based on quantitative data or results.
 Identifies project technical risks and mitigation strategies.

Skills/Abilities
 Curiosity-driven approach to solving complex, customer-driven problems as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
 Demonstrate an ability to learn new programming languages and technologies quickly.
 Collaborate and communicate effectively and openly with multi-disciplinary program team members, program leadership, and non-technical personnel.
 A team player able to work in a fast-paced environment with the ability to balance multiple competing tasks and demands.

Education
Requires a bachelor's in Computer Science or other related field. Master's degree is preferred.

Experience
3-5 years experience in Software Engineering or related field.

Additional Job Description:

Connect With Draper for Future Opportunities! If you don't find the right posting in our Career Opportunities, you may for future consideration.

Job Location - City:

St. Petersburg

Job Location - State:

Florida

Job Location - Postal Code:

33716

The US base salary range for this full-time position is

$75,000.00 - $156,000.00

Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target salaries for the position across all US locations. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Union ranges will be in compliance with the collective bargaining agreement's approved rates by location and role. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.  Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only, and does not include bonuses or benefits.

Our work is very important to us, but so is our life outside of work. Draper supports many programs to improve work-life balance including workplace flexibility, employee clubs ranging from photography to yoga, health and finance workshops, off site social events and discounts to local museums and cultural activities. If this specific job opportunity and the chance to work at a nationally renowned R&D innovation company appeals to you, apply now .

About The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory

Draper Laboratory is an American non-profit research and development organization, headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts; its official name is The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc. The laboratory specializes in the design, development, and deployment of advanced technology solutions to problems in national security, space exploration, health care and energy. The laboratory was founded in 1932 by Charles Stark Draper at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to develop aeronautical instrumentation, and came to be called the MIT Instrumentation Laboratory. During this period the laboratory is best known for developing the Apollo Guidance Computer, the first silicon integrated circuit based computer. It was renamed for its founder in 1970, and separated from MIT in 1973 to become an independent, non-profit organization. The expertise of the laboratory staff includes the areas of guidance, navigation, and control technologies and systems; fault-tolerant computing; advanced algorithms and software systems; modeling and simulation; and microelectromechanical systems and multichip module technology.
Learn more about The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory

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