Computer Systems Researcher (AI/Machine Learning Research) - Mid to Experienced Level (Maryland)

NSA is in search of Computer Science professionals to solve complex problems, test innovative approaches and research new solutions to storing, manipulating, and presenting information. We are looking for you to apply your computer science expertise to projects that seek to create new standards for the transformation of information. If you want to develop technologies and tools and be a part of cutting edge innovations; join our team of experts! Help protect national security interests.

Major Duties

NSA Research Scientists are actively expanding the boundaries of what can be accomplished with artificial intelligence, machine learning, human-machine teaming, software reverse engineering, data science, novel architectures, cyber security, high performance computing, and computational linguistics. Our experts generalize mission problems, advance the scientific state-of-the-art to solve problems, and work with other NSA organizations to get solutions in front of mission users and decision-makers. Our researchers also have the opportunity to collaborate regularly with the scientific community, academia, industry, and other government laboratories; publish papers on unclassified aspects of our work in scientific journals and at conferences; transfer NSA technology to the marketplace through open source software releases and public-private partnerships; serve as faculty members at local universities; and participate in university and K-12 STEM outreach activities across the country. The ideal candidate must be able to demonstrate sound judgement, strong technical skills and the ability to work effectively in a dynamic team environment, as well as independently. Excellent oral and written communication skills, and a proven track record of analyzing and solving technical problems with innovative solutions are also preferred. The candidate should have demonstrated success in conducting Computer Science research to include turning research ideas into running prototype-grade systems. As a Computer Systems Researcher, other responsibilities may include: - Conducting scientific experiments, documenting results, and communicating with colleagues, customers, and decision makers - Training, testing, and deploying machine learning models - Applying software engineering principles to design and/or develop software applications - Designing and optimizing algorithms, data structures, modeling, and analytics to solve real-world scientific problems - Using principles, techniques, procedures, and tools to architect and facilitate the development of hardware solutions - Developing methods and applications for tools to exploit and analyze computer systems and network vulnerabilities - Modeling, simulating, prototyping, and/or benchmarking high performance computing systems. - Developing and implementing approaches to increase the productivity and/or efficiency of high performance computers - Investigating and validating the security properties claimed by confidential computing mechanisms and architectures - Advancing the understanding and capabilities for flexible, layered integrity measurement and attestation architectures and mechanisms - Research, design, and prototype novel approaches to operating system, hypervisor, or firmware security - Applying machine learning models to perform enhanced monitoring and anomaly detection on embedded systems' network communications to include IoT devices using Bluetooth and other wireless IoT protocols - Transitioning state-of-the-art AI/ML research from proofs-of-concept to production-grade systems capable of processing exascale multimodal data streams - Developing "efficient AI" techniques, including quantization, pruning, and distillation, to deploy sophisticated models in resource-constrained or highly secure environments, i.e., edge - Researching methods for AI safety, robustness against adversarial attacks, and formal verification of neural network behaviors in critical mission security contexts

Qualifications

The qualifications listed are the minimum acceptable to be considered for the position. Relevant experience must be in one or more of the following: computer systems research, simulation/model development and prototyping, software design, programming, computational science, algorithm analysis and design, reverse engineering, designing/developing computer or information systems, including engineering hardware or software, machine learning, artificial intelligence, visualization, human-computer interaction, data science, or high performance computing. FULL PERFORMANCE Entry is with 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. An Associate's degree plus 5 years of relevant experience may be considered for individuals with in-depth experience that is clearly related to the position. SENIOR Entry is with 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. An Associate's degree plus 8 years of relevant experience may be considered for individuals with in-depth experience that is clearly related to the position.

Education

Degree must be in Computer Science (CS) or Computer Engineering (CE). Other STEM fields (e.g., Engineering, Mathematics, or Information Systems (IS)) may be considered relevant if the programs contain, at minimum, a concentration of courses in the following foundational CS areas: algorithms; computer architecture (not network architecture); programming methodologies and languages; data structures; logic and computation; and advanced mathematics (for example, calculus, discrete mathematics). **Please upload a copy of your transcripts from all schools attended, prior to applying for this position. Unofficial transcripts are fine at this stage. The minimum qualifications for this position require a degree that demonstrates a concentration of Computer Science (CS) courses in foundational CS areas.**

Promotion Potential

GG-None

How You Will Be Evaluated

Candidates with experience in cybersecurity, computer network defense, vulnerabilities and countermeasures, software development and debugging, network protocols, and those with expertise in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI/ML) are strongly encouraged to apply. Relevant experience in content processing, content triage, and human centered AI involving multimodal data, to include: speech, image, video or text. Seeking applicants with experience in: machine learning model research, multilingual and multimodal modeling, automatic speech recognition (ASR), large language models (LLM), agentic AI, knowledge management, ontologies, AI security, explainable AI, human AI teaming, visualization, data science, human subject research and Sensemaking analytics. Current research focus areas include: Human Language Technology (HLT), Computer Vision (CV), Natural Language Processing (NLP), Natural Language Understanding (NLU), and Human Machine Teaming HMT). Candidates with proven ability to synchronize and fuse disparate data streams (audio, video, text, signals) into unified latent spaces for holistic sensemaking. Candidates with knowledge, skills and experience in high performance computing are also strongly encouraged to apply; in particular, processor and system architectures and networks, memory, tasking (accelerators, parallelism, resource management, heterogeneous computing), productivity (systems modeling & simulation, evaluation, prototyping and benchmarking), scalable algorithms, programming languages (Python, C++, Rust) and libraries, and hardware-software co-design. Candidates with experience in model alignment and tuning, such as, Reinforcement Learning from Human Feedback (RLHF), Reinforcement Learning for Calibrated Decisions (RCLD), Direct Preference Optimization (DPO), and Parameter-Efficient Fine-Tuning (PEFT) strategies (e.g., LoRA, QLoRA). Candidates with knowledge and experience in future telecommunication networks (5G/6G), IoT security, device management, machine learning technologies, Linux or Windows programming and debugging, software design and development, virtualization/containers, Cloud, Trusted Computing, and other specialized computer platforms are strongly encouraged to apply. Desired Skills: Applicants should have excellent problem-solving, communication, and interpersonal skills, and possess a range of knowledge and experience in at least two of the following areas: - Programming (low level, high level, parallel) - Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning - Foundation models (FMs) (Large Language Models (LLMs), as well as models for other modalities) - Simulation/model development and prototyping - Software engineering - Hardware engineering - Architectures and Distributed Computing - Algorithm analysis and design - Reverse engineering - Operating systems and/or device driver development (desktop/server/RTOS) - Cybersecurity/Computer Network Defense - Trustworthy systems - Computer and network security - Telecommunication systems

Who Can Apply

• Current federal employees — excepted service
• Military spouses
• Open to the public
• Veterans

Required Documents

The National Security Agency (NSA) is part of the DoD Intelligence Community Defense Civilian Intelligence Personnel System (DCIPS). All positions in the NSA are in the Excepted Services under 10 United States Codes (USC) 1601 appointment authority. DoD Components with DCIPS positions apply Veterans' Preference to eligible candidates as defined by Section 2108 of Title 5 USC, in accordance with the procedures provided in DoD Instruction 1400.25, Volume 2005, DCIPS Employment and Placement. If you are a veteran claiming veterans' preference, as defined by Section 2108 of Title 5 U.S.C., you may be asked to submit documents verifying your eligibility.

How to Apply

https://apply.intelligencecareers.gov/job-description/1263721

What to Expect Next

https://apply.intelligencecareers.gov/job-description/1263721

Other 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: $105,262 - $192,764 (Full Performance, Senior) 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).